Deuces Wild
by ArtistaDartChan
Summary: After lying dormant for exactly ONE YEAR, CHAPTER 49 IS UP! Jet meets homeless girl Alexis, brings her aboard to keep company and adventure ensues! Read and Review please!
1. The Angel on the Docks

It had been a week since Jet learned of his partner's death and it felt like an eternity to him. The days just seemed to drag by on the giant ship that was only occupied by Jet since Faye had left only a few hours before Jet learned of Spike's fate. Ed had disappeared as did Ein, Faye was gone and no one knew if she'd return, and Spike had been killed by Vicious which left only Jet. He considered selling the ship and giving up bounty hunting, but he figured it was a good way to make money so he kept the ship. He found it much easier without Faye and Spike wandering around looking for food of free repairs to their ships, and a lot lonelier. Many attempts at blind internet dating and clubbing had proved a failure time after time.  
"Cheer up Jet!" his friends told him time after time. Jet decided to give up on the dating scene and just find someone to share the ship with after a food fight broke out in an expensive restaurant. He went from planet to planet and searched for anyone who could actually be a possibility as a shipmate. People came to the ship and some of them he just couldn't stand, some couldn't stand him until one cool night at a seaside port on earth.   
  
"Damn it, I'm sick and tired of having such a huge ship. I'm trading that damned thing in for something smaller and more fuel efficient!" he said as he made his way into a marketplace. He grumbled to himself as he pushed his way through to get food and supplies for him and his ship when he heard a beautiful melody. He'd never heard anything like it before, not even the type of instrument. Before he knew it, it had stopped and he was being pushed around the market again. "What was that? Where was it coming from, it was beautiful!" he wondered as he continued through the market in a better mood than he had arrived. By the time he had left, he had the tune playing repeatedly in his head and was even humming to the parts he could remember. He walked through the dark and empty streets to the docks and as he came closer to the docks, he began to hear the melody again. The sweet and soft twangs echoed through the deserted streets and only made it sound more haunting and beautiful. He continued through the streets hoping to find the source of the harmonic sound. He found that as he came closer to the docks, the sound grew only louder. He continued walking as if he was heading back to the ship and the sound grew louder still. Jet emerged to the fairly empty area to see a lone silhouette sitting on the edge of one of the piers with their feet dangling over the edge, dipping in the water with every passing wave. A pair of boots sat nearby on the weathered wooden planks as the figure's hair flowed gracefully in the cool breeze. It seemed to be a female that sat there looking up at the moon as she strummed on her instrument. The sound of many dull twangs produced a warm and comforting sound, but as quickly as it was played, it was played again in a cold and sad sound. It went back to being bright and warm when the voice began to sing.  
"The moon is full, and my arms are empty. All night long I pleaded and cried. You always said, the day that you would leave me would be a cold day in July." She sang sadly. The instrument sounded so bright and cheerful, yet the singer sounded so sad. Jet stood and listened, holding his bags of supplies and food, listening to the girl sing her song. He stood there a good 5 minutes as she finished her song. As she ended, Jet placed his bags on the ground and applauded as the instrument fell silent. A face turned and looked at him. She looked so sad and scared, but maybe it was just the surprise of the sound of applause.  
"That was amazing! How did you do that?" Jet asked as he picked up his bags and walked toward her. She didn't know what to do so she removed the strap of the instrument and placed it on the pier beside her. As Jet drew closer, he could see her more clearly. She was a young girl, maybe 18 or so with long, straight, coppery-red hair and blue eyes. Steel blue, almost silver. Her face was dirtied and her clothes were tattered and worn. She looked very thin and pale.  
"It's a family heirloom. It's been in the family since the 1900's." she said timidly as if she didn't know whether he was going to steal it or hurt her. She was very apprehensive as if she was in danger while she was talking to Jet.   
"Oh, don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you or anything, I just heard the sound of that thing and I had to find out where it was coming from. It was just so beautiful and soothing, I had to find what was making it." he said as he sat down beside her. She didn't know what to do.  
"Uh, thanks. It's an instrument called a guitar." She explained becoming a little more social and open. "It makes noise by the vibration of the wire wound strings in the body of the instrument and changing the length of the piece of the string that's allowed to vibrate." she held it in her lap and played several different notes as she moved her fingers up and down the neck of the instrument.   
"That's amazing! And you say its been passed down in your family since the 1900's?" Jet asked as he became entranced by the sound again. The girl nodded.  
"I believe since 1952. It's all I have left of anything."  
"What do you mean?  
"I lost both of my parents when I was young. All I had then was this guitar and a few clothes when I was sent to an orphanage. I hated it there and ran away from it when I was 16 with the clothes on my back and the guitar. I've played for the money for food and an occasional piece of clothing, but mostly the clothing is stolen." She said sadly as she told her story.  
"That's a shame. You have nowhere to live?"   
"No, I sleep in the parks with my guitar or on rooftops. It depends on the weather."  
"Well, I understand that because of your past however many years living in the streets that you aren't the type to jump at the chance I'm about to offer, but do you see that large ship over there?" Jet asked as he pointed to his huge ship. The girl nodded. "That's my ship. I'm the only one aboard it and I was wondering if you'd like to accompany me on it. I don't go anywhere in particular; I wander the system looking for bounty…work and jobs…" he said as he caught himself before he said he was a bounty hunter.  
"I'm not that kind of girl. I don't do sexual favors." She said disgustedly as she went to get up.  
"No! No, I don't mean that at all. It's just that, my partner just died and I have no one else on that huge ship and it gets really lonely. I'll provide you with food, clothing, and shelter, almost like a big brother or something. Please consider coming aboard and living with me?" he practically begged. She looked at him. He didn't look like a bad guy the way he was pleading and asking her to join him.  
"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to go out and see the other places in the universe. Alright, but as soon as I feel unsafe, I'm gone." She said.  
"No problem! I'll cook and stuff, you just be a good guest and keep me company. That and play that guitar thing you have, it makes such a beautiful sound." Jet said agreeing. He helped her to her feet as she grabbed her guitar. It wasn't until Jet saw her standing that he realized how tall she was. She had the most graceful and long legs. They weren't too thin or obnoxiously thick or muscular, they were very fitting for her body. She had definitely not been eating much, she was very thin and was pale in the light of the overhead street lamp. "Well, I suppose if we're to be living together, I'd need to know your name." Jet asked. She looked up at him.  
"My name? It's been so long since I've ever had to answer that question, it's Alexis. What's yours?" She asked. Jet only smiled.  
"Name's Jet, Jet Black and this ship here is 'The Bebop' and I've had it for quite some time. By the way, how old are you?"  
"I'm 19, 20 in only 3 weeks." She said happily. "And your age? Or am I not allowed to know that too?" she asked trying to get information about this man that decided to so kindly take her in.  
"I'm in my 40's and what do you mean not allowed to know that to? What did I not tell you?" He asked her wondering what she was talking about.  
"Wandering around for work and jobs and you have a ship like that? Only one kind of person can have that much money. You're a bounty hunter aren't you?" she asked with a smile. How could she have known? Well, it was useless now.  
"You got me, I'm a bounty hunter and my partners were too; the infamous Faye Valentine and Spike Siegel. We wandered around together collecting bounty heads and cashing them in."  
"I don't know who they are but at least now I know the truth about you, Jet." She said as he walked her through the corridors being led by the tall and balding man.   
"What do you mean at least you know the truth about me?" he asked her curiously.  
"I don't like people keeping secrets from me and I actually find out sometimes." She said as they came upon an open area. It looked like a little living area and had 6 doors.  
"Well, this is the living area. The computer, T.V., and radio are yours to use freely, just don't steal them for yourself." He said. He pointed to each of the doors. "The first door is the bathroom. It has the necessities but isn't a luxury bathroom. The second door is my bedroom but is seldom used since I'm always piloting the ship. The next two are Spike and Faye's bedrooms and I recommend staying far from them. Faye occasionally returns looking for food or free repairs and Spike's gone for good but don't go in his room anyway. The middle one there is Ed's but she left and took my dog so you can either have her room or the last one. The last one is usually used for storage but it's probably the largest of the rooms." He explained.  
"Well, I don't like the idea of taking someone else's room, even if they have left and aren't coming back, so I'll take the last one. I'll move all the stuff so you don't have to worry about me being a bother and having you move stuff." She said as she went to open the door to the last room.  
"Oh, no that's alright. I'll do it; you look like you could use a nice, warm shower though. I'll get you some of Faye's clothes to wear until we can go and cash another bounty head and buy you some good clothes." He said as he sat her down on the faded yellow couch. He opened the door to Faye's room and returned a few moments later with a pair of tight, dark blue shorts. He ducked into Spike's room and returned with a large, hooded, gray sweatshirt.  
"Thank you so much Jet, its truly kind of you to do this for me." she said with a humble smile.  
"It's no problem! And if you need the unmentionables, go into Faye's room and look for them because I figured that's out of bounds for me." he said scratching his head. "Now go shower so I can get the stuff from your room into Ed's old room." He shooed her off to the bathroom. She got into the bathroom and shut the door behind her. Jet watched as she shut the door with a smile and started the shower. He immediately got to work setting up her room. 


	2. Dinner, Discussion, and a Song?

The water stopped in the shower stall and Jet had just placed down the last box in Ed's room coming from Alex's new room. The bed had been cleared and the drawers were mostly cleared out and off. There was a mirror that was being stored in the room but Jet decided that it would be a good idea to leave it in there for Alex to use. He heard the door squeak open and footsteps in the living area. As he stood and wiped the sweat from his brow, Alex peeked in and smiled.   
"Hey there! How's it going?" she asked as her tangled damp hair hung disheveled around her face. Even though it was red, now that it was wet it looked almost brown.   
"Good! Your room's cleared out and ready for you whenever you are and I was just about to go and fix some food up, interested?"  
"Most definitely! What are you gonna make?" she asked happily. Jet had just bought food at the market before coming home and he was wondering where it was.   
"I don't know, whenever I find the food I just bought I'll let you know." He said scratching his head and looking around and then venturing out to the kitchen. He heard footsteps outside in the corridor and then the door open. It shut and then the sound of more footsteps in the same corridor coming in his direction again. There was a knock on the doorway and when Jet turned around to look, he saw Alex standing there with the bag full of food that he had just bought.   
" It was outside the door. You're lucky no one else took it before I got to it!" she smiled as she placed it down on the nearby table.   
"Yea, yea…I'll have it ready in about half an hour. Go get settled into your room." He said dismissing her from the kitchen. She went off to her room and within an few minutes, he heard her strumming on her guitar. After he had prepared the food and placed it into the oven to cook, he walked into the living area and peeked around the side of her doorway and watched her play some more.  
"I have very good hearing, Jet, it's very hard to sneak up on me." she said as she finished playing.  
"Is that so? Well I guess I'll have to know that for next time." he said as he sat on the bed beside her and watched her play some more.  
"I love the smell of this sweatshirt. It's like cologne and cigarettes." She said as she placed her guitar down and wrapped her own arms around herself and inhaled the scent that had been somehow burned into the shirt.   
"That's how Spike always smelled. He constantly had cigarettes on him and wore cheap cologne when the occasion called for it." Jet said. "God I'll miss that idiot."  
"How did he die, if you don't mind me asking?" Alex asked cautiously. Jet sighed.  
"He used to work with this man called Vicious and recently the tides turned in this group they both belonged to and Spike left. To sum it all up, Vicious got pissed off and killed Spike. In turn, Spike also killed Vicious."  
"Wow, talk about irony." Alex said as the listened to what Jet had to say. She didn't really show emotion, just the simple sympathetic gaze. Her blue eyes were like deep sapphire pools that reflected the light.   
"Well, if you're going to be around here, let alone around me, you should be able to protect yourself." Jet said with a sigh as he walked away from the room. He walked into Spike's workshop and picked up a gun. It was one of Spike's favorites but he decided that it would be a good starter gun for Alex. He wiped it off with a rag that had been laying nearby and walked into Alex's room polishing it with the rag.  
"What's that for? I don't need a gun!" she said protesting her need of a firearm. Jet sat on the bed beside her where he sat only a few moments before.  
"I'm a bounty hunter Alex, trust me, you'll need it." he said making sure it was emptied and totally cleaned out before handing the handgun to her. She looked it over, seemingly studying its features and pieces. She looked up to Jet.  
"I have no idea how to use a gun, let alone aim it or fire it." she said just holding it in her hands having no idea what to do with it.  
"I'll teach you if you teach me how to play an instrument." He said. She seemed to be thinking about it until she looked him in the eye slyly.  
"What instrument do you plan on playing? I don't know how to play everything you know." She said. Jet scratched his head.  
"I don't know. I'm planning on going after a bounty head tomorrow and was thinking that the money we have left over from buying you clothes and stuff, we can go to a music store or something and get some things." He said as if he had thought it out.  
"Well, I don't know…there are a few things that could be nice. Like I had this crazy idea that won't work cause we're short on space but…" she trailed off.  
"No, go ahead and tell me!" Jet insisted.  
"Well, when I saw the inside of Ed's room, I figured that if I took this room, we could turn Ed's room into a studio or media room." She said cautiously.  
"Which would include what?" Jet asked. He wasn't familiar with the idea of a media room.  
"A media room is basically a room where we have all our electronics and whatnot but in this case, all our instruments. I can play several different instruments and if we get the right hardware and software, we can record music and sell it for money." She said telling him and explaining. At first it didn't look like he was too enthused about it but after a few moments, a smile took over the thoughtful grimace.  
"That's a really good idea! I'll have my living being a bounty hunter and you can be a singer and sell your music! That's a wonderful idea!"  
"The only problem is storage. What are we going to do with all the stuff that's in her room already?" Alex asked.  
"I'll auction it off. Ebay, newspapers, and flea markets can take the stuff and we'll get money for it. Damn, so much money'll be coming in, we'll have plenty of money for this studio and for you!" Jet said happily.   
"Easy there, Jet. We should sleep before we do anything. It's been a wild night and I think it'd be a good idea to sleep on all these ideas." She said as she felt like she was being overwhelmed by his ideas. Jet seemed to agree since it was getting late anyway.  
"Yea, I guess that'd be a good idea. But why not eat first? I made my specialty, bell peppers and beef." He said as he remembered that there was still food cooking on the stove.  
"Really? I didn't know you could cook Jet!"  
"I try, but it's never really good. The only problem about the bell peppers and beef is that there's no beef. I'm lacking in the cash department at the moment so I figured I'd leave tonight and find a bounty head somewhere, but then I came across you and now I'm pushing everything back."  
"Oh, I didn't mean for you to screw up your plans!"  
"No, no, that's alright. I've actually be looking for some sort of company that would carry their own weight around here and I guess this is your test to see if you stay or not." He said almost gravely. As he explained, Alex felt a chill go down her spine. She knew that out of the goodness of his heart, he took her in and she would do anything to keep a roof over her head and food in her stomach. Jet escorted her into the kitchen and dining area and handed her a plate. She stood by the stove and let him pour the cooked vegetables onto her plate. They smelled so incredible to her but they weren't too appealing to Jet. She took a seat at the table nearby and picked up a fork.  
"Jet, this smells delicious!" she said happily as her stomach growled loudly.  
"Well, I've had it so many times I don't really crave it. but it's cheap to make and fills you up so I make it anyway." He said as he picked up his fork. She chewed and swallowed her first forkful and acted like she was critiquing it.  
"Y'know, this would be pretty mean on top of some buttered pasta with some ground pepper and salt." She said. Jet just looked at her.  
"How do you know what would taste good with it? I thought you were homeless and only stole food!"  
"Well, I used to work as a food critic at a newspaper, but when the found out it was because I was doing it for food, I was fired." She said as she ate some more of the peppers.  
"How long ago was that and for how long did you work?" he asked as he swallowed a forkful himself.  
"Well, it was maybe a year or two ago and I got away with it for maybe 3 months. I was eating at fancy restaurants 3 meals a day and I did do the articles. But when the tab grew too large, the editor in chief of the paper got suspicious and had someone follow me around. They reported I was homeless and I was eating at the restaurants almost constantly. The chief called me in one day and questioned me about it, but then fired me. After that, it was back to the streets and scrounging for food. After I went back to being homeless, it was difficult for me to eat anything because it wasn't gourmet or prepared especially for me like it had been." She explained.  
"Wow, that must've really been your worst time." Jet said as he ate some more.  
"Yea, it was either that or the time I was…never mind. I'll just say that wasn't my worst time." she said as she began to recall something but tried to quickly forget it.  
"You sure? You can tell me." he said easily. He saw tear well in her eyes.  
"No, that's alright. It's something I don't think would be a good idea to share with other people." She said quietly as she ate more of her peppers. The rest of the dinner was silent until Jet got up.  
"Alex, do you want some more peppers?" he asked her.   
"Yes, please." She said with a nod. He looked at her and saw she was smiling to herself slightly.  
"What are you all smiley about?" he asked as he filled her plate again.  
"Do you have a notebook or some paper I could used for a minute? And a pencil or pen would also be nice Jet." She asked as he put the plate down in front of her.  
"I do, you want it now?" he asked somewhat confused. She nodded as he walked out of the kitchen. He could hear her humming and singing. She had an amazing voice and it was good that she'd be able to record it and make some money, maybe she'd even gain some recognition. He grabbed a pen and a few sheets of paper from the desk in his room and returned to see Alex drumming her fingers on the table keeping a beat in her head as he hummed. The tune sounded hauntingly beautiful as she opened her eyes to see him standing there.  
"Thanks Jet!" she said as he put it down in front of her and she began to scribble words down on it as she hummed slowly. All he could see was what was written across the top of the page and underlined 'Don't Bother None'. He walked away but before he left the kitchen and her, he turned to see her stuffing more peppers into her mouth while humming her song and writing it down. 


	3. Don't Bother None

Moments later, Jet heard Alex putting her dishes in the sink and then starting the water. He was counting how long it would take her to rinse the dishes off and leave them there for him to clean later, but the water ran for a good couple minutes before it shut off and he could hear Alex skip off to her room. She began playing but it wasn't like she was playing a full song. She'd play one or two notes and then stop for a few moments, and then play again. It sounded really awkward for about half an hour but then it gradually became more and more smooth sounding and fluent. After two full hours, Jet would've thought that she'd have given up but she was still playing. He liked the sound of this new song, it wasn't as slow as the other ones she played earlier in the night, it had more of an attitude and generally was more upbeat and bouncy sounding. When she began to hum to the playing of her instrument, that got Jet's attention and he decided to see what she was doing. It was getting late anyway so he figured he'd also to tell her to quiet down for the night. He looked in and he saw her sitting on her bed writing with one had and sipping a glass of water with the other.   
"Hey, whatcha working on?" he asked her as she placed the glass on the bedside table.  
"During dinner, when we were talking about my old boss at the newspaper, I remembered the time I had found enough for a cup of coffee and a newspaper and I sat down next to some old guy who was just complaining about everything but he dropped his wallet when got up to leave." She began.  
"Really? I have a feeling there's more to the story." He said with a smile. She nodded happily.  
"I was dirt poor so I slowly picked up the wallet and walked out. I walked around for a while before opening it to find it totally empty." She began to laugh and so did he.  
"Wow, talk about your bad luck!" he chuckled.  
"Yea, but the wallet was nice so I pawned it off for a couple bucks and went to a bar for a drink. While I sat there drinking, some guy about 25 or so, was telling his story about how he met this gorgeous girl at another bar and took her home that night and when he woke up, his car was gone. He seemed really upset but it was good for a laugh cause of the way he said she stole his heart."  
"Well, I must say, that should make out to be a mighty interesting song!" Jet chuckled some more.  
"It's about the day I stole some old guys' wallet that had no money, I pawned it off for a few extra bucks, and heard about some other guy having his car and heart stolen by a girl he met in a bar one night. Kinda makes it interesting!" she smiled. Jet stopped smiling and sort of went cold.  
"Heh, Spike used to say that all the time. 'Kinda makes it interesting' was almost one of his catchphrases." Jet said with a slight hint of sadness in his voice.   
"Oh, I'm sorry Jet. I didn't mean to…"  
"No, that's alright. You couldn't have known." He said as he glanced at the gun on the nightstand.  
"Jet, do you want me to leave?" she asked slowly. She had a feeling that she shouldn't have came aboard the ship to travel with him.  
"Why would you think I want you to leave?" he asked her. She shrugged her shoulders.  
"I don't know. It's just that you're upset over your partner's death and I don't know if it'd be a good idea for a person like me to be around if it happened just recently." She said as she went to go put her guitar back into its case.   
"No, no, that's alright. It's been awhile since I've had anyone around here on the ship with me so it's just going to be difficult for me for maybe a few days. I never meant for it to seem like I wanted you to leave or you weren't welcome here. I actually enjoy you being around. The few hours you've been here, it's been really entertaining."  
"The harmonica." Alex said aloud. Jet looked at her.  
"The what?" Jet asked curiously as she attempted to change the subject.  
"The harmonica. It's the perfect instrument for you."  
"How does that relate to what I was saying?" he asked still curious as to what the hell she was talking about.  
"Remember how you told me you wanted me to teach you how to play an instrument?"  
"Yea, and?"  
"The harmonica is a small instrument you can take practically anywhere and the sound it makes is different from any other instrument you've ever heard. Not to mention, it's perfect for very emotional people who can reach the emotional extremes of severe anger, sadness, and happiness. You're perfect and I think that my song would be great with a harmonica part." She said thinking out loud. Jet didn't really follow. He looked at her strangely.   
"What's the name of it again? A harminica?" he said seemingly playing with the sound of the word. Alex looked up at him.  
"Do you have a computer? I might be able to find some information about it and a picture or two." She asked. He led her out to the living area and showed her to a fairly modern computer. She sat there and typed a few moments before she said another word. "Eureka!"  
"Find something?" he asked as he leaned in and looked at the screen.  
"Yea, an almost ancient web page with audio clips and a few pictures." She said as a window popped up with a picture of a small, metallic, rectangular object with a layer of square holes.  
"That's a…"  
"Harmonica Jet, it's called a harmonica. Give me a sec and you can hear it." she said as she typed away some more.  
"A harmonica." He said attempting to fool with the word again. He repeated it to himself quietly until he heard an amazing sound. It was sort of metallic sounding and made a noise he had never heard before.  
"That's what it sounds like. Mind you, this particular tune is a blues melody, which is sort of what you should play. It comes from the soul and is based mostly on the emotion of sadness. It can be jazzed up to a brighter tone, but a harmonica is generally a blues instrument." Alex said as she swayed to the music. Jet seemed to enjoy the sound it made and how the feeling was brought out.  
"I want to play that." He said as he listened more intently. He seemed to be becoming entranced by the sound of the tiny metallic object. Alex looked up at the balding man.  
"You do? I didn't know if you'd like it as much as another instrument, but I guess the harmonica is a good starter." She said as the piece of music finished. She shut off the computer, got up, stretched, and yawned. Jet just smiled.  
"It's getting really late, you should get some sleep. You've had a really exciting day and I'm sure you're tired out. Go to bed and I'll have a nice breakfast for you tomorrow morning." He said attempting to shoo her off to bed. She walked down the hall and into her room, closing the door behind her. No sooner did she go to sleep, Jet also had gone to his room and fell unconscious in his bed.  
The next morning, falling off her bed and hitting the floor waked Alex up. It was after 10 and the ship was moving. She rubbed her head as she walked out of her room and started looking for Jet. She found him in the front of the ship in the navigations area and piloting area steering the ship wildly.  
"What's going on?" she asked as she was almost knocked off her feet.  
"We're under attack, I have to find a way to get them away from the ship!" he said as he pulled her down into the pilot's seat.  
"I can't steer the ship! Where are you going?!" she asked as he put her hands on the steering column and ran off.  
"Just keep the ship steady! I'm going out to fight them off with my smaller ship!" he said as he ran out the door and disappeared down the hall. Moments later, the status screen displayed the launching of a smaller, one-man ship to fight the handful of other similar ships. Alex continued to hold the ship steady throughout the continuous barrage of fire from the enemy.   
"So much to waking up to a delicious breakfast." She thought aloud to herself as she began to attempt to maneuver the ship through the fire. Its response times were slow and it wasn't very fast, but she could handle it. she dodged missiles and machine gun fire very well.  
"Alex! What do you think you're doing?!" he asked her through the headset.  
"Trying not to get us killed! Do what you're going to do and I'll take care of…the ship!" she screamed back as she evaded another missile.  
"The ship has a name you know!" he said sensing that she was about to call the ship by it's name but unable to because she didn't know it.  
"And it would be?"  
"The Bebop, now just do what you need to do to keep her in one piece!" he said as he shot the wing off of one of the ships. One by one, the enemy ships slowly disappeared from the radar and the enemy fire had ceased. Jet pulled his ship back into the hangar and hopped out to meet Alex, who had came to see him get out safely. She didn't know what to expect from him.  
"Jet I…" she began before she was cut off.  
"Where did you learn to fly like that?" he asked her. She turned and walked off. "I asked you a question!"  
"And I'll answer it!" she said as she turned and yelled at him. He followed as she walked throught the hallways to her room. She threw open her guitar case and opened a hidden pocket, there were several pictures and papers as well as computer discs and CDs. She rummaged through the pile she had strewn out on her bed until she came up with a picture and a magazine clipping from about 20 years ago. She handed Jet the picture first. It was a picture of a little girl with her mother and her father. Her father was in a racing car and she and her mother were standing beside it. 


	4. Remembering Her Past

"This is you." He said almost knowingly. She nodded as she skimmed through the magazine clipping.   
"Yeah, I was the little girl. Those were my parents. My dad was a racer, not only did he race cars, he raced ships too. He always had me with him and tried to get me to learn how to handle ships and I guess that's where I got my talent to steer this huge piece of junk through all that enemy fire. It's not a top fuel racer, but it's good enough for me I suppose." She said handing him the article.  
"You drove top fuels?! But you said your parents died when you were young?"  
"They died when I was about 8, I used to help move the ships into the staging lanes. I started doing that when I was 6." She said as Jet read through the article about her father's racing.  
"How did they die?" he asked as he handed both the picture and the clipping back to her.  
"I woke up one morning to the flashing lights of ambulances and police cars. They told me that there was a burglar that killed them," she said as she pulled out a newspaper article, "but it was a murder. It couldn't have been a burglar, my parents put up a struggle and were found shot in the head and chest several times. At the funeral, I didn't know what to do and I guess that was when I decided to just leave. I went to the orphanage as long as I could tolerate it and then left. I want to find out who killed my mother and father, and rip their head off with my bare hands." She said angrily. Jet read the article quickly and then handed it back to her.  
"I'm a bounty hunter Alex, I'm sure we can go back and trace the person." He said wrapping his arm around her in an attempt to comfort her. She leaned onto his shoulder and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of the sweatshirt.  
"Jet, I think we were meant to live together," she said.   
"What do you mean?"  
"We both lost loved ones and we are both sad about it. I think we were sent to each other for comfort and whatnot. Maybe its just destiny."  
"Destiny maybe, but I base my life on chances and risks. I'm a balding, grumpy old man who hunts people down for money and can't cook for my life. That's just the way my cards were dealt, I don't believe in destiny or fate; its all chance and the luck of the draw." He said still hugging her.  
"Whatever you say Jet, whatever you say." She said. They stood there for a few moments until Alex's stomach growled loudly.   
"Hungry?" he asked with a smile as she took a step back and placed a hand over her stomach.  
"Yea, I never woke up to a delicious breakfast, remember?" she said. He smiled and scratched his head remembering what he told her the night before.  
"Um, yea, about that…uh…" he began as he searched for an excuse. She smiled and began to giggle.  
"I understand, you can't cook and you also had to defend the ship. Don't worry about it." she said as she rubbed her stomach.   
"Well, I know of a good diner not too far from here and I have enough cash for breakfast and an outfit or two for you. You need them if we're going out to get a bounty head." He said as he got up and began to escort her to the bridge. They walked there almost in step.   
"Oh, alright, great. How long until we get there?"  
"Maybe 10 minutes or so, so you can go and get changed…oh yea, um, you can get some more clothes from Spike's or Faye's rooms. Help yourself to their clothes, I'll just wash them before putting them back." he said as he went to navigate the ship towards a reddish planet.  
"Is that?"  
"Mars? Yea, haven't you been here before?" he asked as she looked from the doorway.  
"Once when I was really little, with my parents for one of my dad's races." He was put in the hall of fame at a track somewhere on the equator."  
"The Equatorial Circuit?" he asked trying to think of any top fuel racing tracks near the equator.  
"That's the one! He held the record for fastest lap. I don't know if he still does, but I'd like to check it out sometime when we come back around this way."  
"We can go by today. Actually, good amounts of bounty heads hang around tracks in hopes to win bets and get money. We can go there after we eat and get you some clothes, if you'd like." He said.  
"You mean it Jet?" she asked happily. He nodded.   
"Yea, why not?" he said as he shrugged his shoulders. He figured it'd be a good trip down memory lane for her to see her father still immortalized in the hall of fame.  
"YAY! I'll go and get dressed now, I'll be ready in about 5 minutes!" she said happily as she ran off. He could hear her footsteps as she ran through the corridors to the rooms, but then a loud thud.  
"Alex, are you alright?" he yelled. It was quiet for a few seconds, but then he heard her footsteps again and then the slam of a door. As Jet landed the ship in a harbor near the track, Alex came out to the bridge dressed in a pair of cuffed blue jeans and a belly-top with her hair pulled up. She walked over to the large glass window and looked out at the beautiful inlet.   
"It's been so long, but I remember being here." she said as she leaned on the console to look around. It seemed like her eyes were damp as she glanced around.  
"Well, it doesn't look like you'll have much of a problem fitting in around here. I guess I should go change." He said as he turned the ship off.  
"No, that's alright. I'll go find some shoes and then we can go." She said as she walked off again. Jet went around and got ready to leave when Alex appeared again. She had changed her jeans to a different pair and was wearing a pair of Faye's sneakers. She looked cute as she spun around to display her new fashion. Jet clapped with a smile.  
"Beautiful, now undercover, we can be brother and sister. We can't let anyone know we're bounty hunters. Where's your gun?"  
"I have to take it with me?"  
"Yes! You need protection! Go get your gun and once of Jet's black leather trench coats and hurry up." he said as she scampered off. She returned with the gun and a black trench coat. She put the coat on and stood there. Jet opened the coat and put the gun in an inside pocket.   
"It's gonna be warm today!" Alex complained.  
"Alex," Jet began as they started out of the ship, "it's only going to get up into the upper 50's today, that's not that warm." They got to the door and Jet opened it. As he did, a cool sea breeze greeted their noses.   
"Mmm…smells so good!" She said as they stepped onto the wooden pier and headed into the city. As they walked, Alex looked around.  
"So, you remember any of this?" Jet asked as he saw her stopping and staring at several different stores and buildings. She nodded.  
"It was never this busy when I was younger, always quiet in this town. Now it's just another big city. It's amazing." She said as she peered into an old, rundown bread shop that had been condemned. "We used to buy breakfast there. The woman that owned it was a friend of the family and I always ate free. I always ordered the Belgian waffles with extra syrup." She said as she recalled an old childhood memory.  
"Yea, I was in here once very long ago, they did have delicious food." He said as they continued to walk. They came upon a diner where Jet stopped. Alex looked at it and then looked to Jet.  
"We're eating here?" she asked. Jet nodded.  
"Yeah, why? Anything I should know?"  
"No, it's just I don't remember this being here." she said as she took his arm and they walked inside. As they entered, the warms smell of breakfast foods greeted their noses. They stood for a few moments before a perky young woman greeted them.  
"Hello, welcome to the Red Rock Diner! I am Trisha and I will be your waitress this morning. May I ask smoking or non?" she smiled.  
"Smoking please." Jet said. Alex looked up at him. "What? I haven't had any cigarettes this morning!" he said as he started reaching into his pockets. She rolled her eyes and the both of them followed the waitress to a table for two in a corner. They sat down and opened the menus that had already been placed there.  
"Can I ask what you would like to drink?" Trisha asked them.  
"I'll have coffee please, strong." Jet said as he tossed a half empty box of cigarettes onto the table. Alex rolled her eyes with a smile.  
"I'd like some orange juice, please." She said to the girl with a smile.   
"Sure! I'll be right back with your beverages." She said as she wrote on her notepad and walked off. Alex looked across the table at Jet who was lighting up a cigarette.  
"Cigarettes and strong coffee? It's a wonder you aren't dead yet." She said as she looked down at the menu.   
"Hey, the coffee wakes me up, the cigarettes are just because." He said as he took a few puffs and then looked down at the menu. They both somewhat knew what they wanted so they were ready by the time the waitress returned with their drinks.  
"Are you ready to order?" she asked as she placed them down on the table and pulled out her notepad again. Both Jet and Alex nodded.  
"I'll have the breakfast ham steak with scrambled eggs, home fries, and white toast." He said. She scribbled it down and looked at Alex.  
"Oh, I'd like the French toast with bacon and sausage, please." Alex said. The waitress smiled and scribbled some more.  
"Great, your meal should be ready in about 10 minutes!" she said as she walked off and left Jet and Alex at the table.   
"So we don't have meat back on the ship, so you have to get it here?"  
"You know, you pick on me a lot. Do you have a button or switch so I can just turn you off?" he said with a teasing smile.   
"Well if you didn't smoke and were healthy, I wouldn't have a problem!" she joked back.  
"Oh that's it, I think I'm going to have to throw you off the ship now. No clothes for you, you'd better get your guitar and clear out!" he teased.  
"Fine then! I won't teach you how to play the harmonica and cook well." She grinned.  
"Oh no! You can't leave! Please forgive me and come back to me!" he chuckled. Alex giggled also and took a sip of her juice.  
"We are so bad. We aren't allowed to be together anymore. We don't behave in public." She giggled again.  
"I think it's going to be really wonderful with you around now. You can cook, and are capable of intelligent conversation. That is very good!" he said.  
"Yea, yea, anyway, after we're done here, wanna shop first or go to the track first?" she asked. There was a slight tone of anxiousness in her voice.  
"Let's go to the track first and then stop at the clothing store on the way back to the ship." He said. She smiled as he finished his sentence.  
"Great! I can hardly wait to get to the track. It's been so long and it'll be difficult to stay away from the pit area since I was so used to being in them all the time." she said.  
"Yea, what did your dad race when he nailed the record?" Jet asked.  
"It was a custom built top fueler, I can't even remember all the different parts that went into it. It was so long ago and I just put it out of mind and worried about more important things, you know?" she said.   
"Oh, I see. How old were you when you came here with your parents?"   
"It was a week before my seventh birthday, November 12th. So it's almost the 13th anniversary of him breaking the record and creating his new one. I can't believe it's been that long."  
"Excuse me." interrupted a young man, roughly Alex's age. He was tall with chin-length white hair and blue eyes.  
"Uh, can I help you?" she asked, as he seemed to be looking her over.  
"Yea, I heard you talking about your dad and a racing record. I knew a girl when I was really little whose dad came here and broke the record. You wouldn't happen to be Alexis Bondora, would you?" he asked slowly and cautiously. She looked at him awkwardly.  
"Yes, yes I am." She said. The man smiled widely showing his beautiful smile and his eyes just looked so beautiful. She had seen this face before.  
"Lex! You don't remember me?" he asked with an enthusiastic smile. She remembered a little boy calling her Lex when she came here.  
"Wait, I remember someone, a little boy who used to play with me in the pits and run around calling me Lexie…I can't remember who it was!" she said trying to think harder.  
"Think of something sharp. Knives, swords, they all have…"he said trying to hint his name to her. She thought and then it just seemed like something clicked.  
"Blade? Blade McGowan?" she asked with a nervous smile. The man smiled. Alex laughed happily and stood up to hug him. "Blade! It's been so long since I've seen you! You look great!"   
"Lexie, it's amazing. You look absolutely gorgeous and I swear, you're like an angel." He said as he kissed her cheek. Jet sat there watching them both with an extremely eerie feeling.   
"Please, sit down." She said as she sat back down into the booth and he slid in next to her. She smiled as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. " So how've you been? It's been an eternity since I've seen you!"  
"Oh, I've been good. I've been working over at an office building a few blocks over doing model work. I didn't think my scrawny body would be good for anything but here I am gracing the covers of magazines and whatnot." He said with a smile as he brought his arm back to his own personal space.  
"Wow! Oh yea, this is my partner, Jet Black. We just wander around looking for…old musical instruments. We're going to set up a music studio and I'm going to start recording music."  
"Nice to meet you sir." Blade said as he reached his hand out. Jet shook it with a smile.  
"Nice to meet you as well. It's good to see Alex happy like this. Feeds inspiration, eh?" Jet said to Alex. She nodded.  
"Oh, of course! I wrote a song the other night for the guitar." She told him.  
"The guitar? Your mom's guitar?" he asked her. She nodded.  
"Yea, mom and dad are dead." She said.  
"No way! What are you talking about?"  
"You didn't hear? I thought you would've! They were killed!"  
"When?"  
"I was 8. The police said it was a burglary but there was nothing missing out of the house. And there was definitely a struggle. I know someone killed them and I want to find out who it was and kill them." She said telling the story to her old friend.  
"Lexie, I had no idea! I'm so sorry!" he said as he hugged her again.  
"It's alright. How's mom McGowan?" she asked him.  
"She got sick. She's in cryo until they find a cure." He said.  
"Oh that's horrible! I hope they find a cure soon, mom was so great!" she said empathetically.  
"Yea, but the most bizarre thing happened to me about a month ago. I got a letter from my father." He said with a funny look on his face.  
"Your father? Who is he? I thought your mom told you he was dead." She said with a confused look on her face.  
"Apparently not. A month ago, I got this letter from him explaining everything. How he changed his name and how he was going to become the leader of a powerful organization. He said he wanted me to join him and be at his side so that when he dies, I can take over."  
"Wow, that's bizarre. Did he give any details?" she asked him. Jet still sat there listening in on the conversation, sipping his coffee and smoking his cigarette.  
"He said he changed his name. He dropped his last name and changed his first name to Vicious." Jet's eyes went wide, his face went pale, his heart stopped, and he looked at the boy. That's why he looked familiar. The hair was exactly the same and so was his face. The only difference was that he was a happy and cheerful person. Vicious was just a ruthless killer. 


	5. He's WHO!

"Vicious?" Alex asked as she glanced at a pale Jet who was wide eyed in shock. She smacked his cheek to try and snap him out of his trance. "And what was the name of the organization? Do you remember?" Blade nodded.  
"Yea, it was something like 'Red Dragon' or something. But that doesn't matter; I'm not going to bother. If he shows up, he shows up. I haven't seen him or heard from him all my life and now he decides to come back and want to be a family? I think not. I have a great life as a model and I'm living very well." He said with a smile as Jet finally put his cup down.   
"Wow, well Blade, it's been great seeing you. We're going to eat and then head out to the track to visit the wall of fame to see who's coming close to my dad's record." Alex said as she attempted to get him away from Jet.   
"Oh, alright, maybe I can get your number and if you're going to be in town for a few days, we can go out to dinner or something?" he suggested.  
"Um…sure. Jet, what's the ship's number again?" she asked him as he slowly pulled out of the trance.   
"It's 597-26076-80591-60940." Alex quickly scribbled it down on a napkin and handed it to Blade, who was watching her scribble it down.  
"Great, I'll call you then?" he asked.  
"Yea, that'd be great!" she said with a smile.  
"Wonderful. Good seeing you again Lexie. Take care!" he said as he kissed her on the cheek and then got up and left. As he left ear range Alex looked over at Jet.  
"No wonder I got a bad feeling when I saw him. I CAN'T BELIEVE VICIOUS HAS A SON!" he whispered loudly. He practically screamed it under his breath.   
"But I thought you said Vicious was dead? How can that affect Blade now?" she asked curiously.  
"If they find out about Blade, they'll hunt him down like an animal and kill him. He's heir to the entire Red Dragon Crime Syndicate. If they don't have a leader already, they'll be looking for him, regardless of whether he's to head the organization or they find him as a threat to their future." He explained.  
"So in other words, if the organization has no leader, it'll probably be him. If they do have a leader, they'll hunt him down and kill him if they find out he's Vicious' son?" Jet nodded. "That's messed up! How can we protect him?"  
"Unless you can break into the building and destroy his records, there is no other way to save him, unless we keep an eye on him. And even then, we couldn't protect him forever, this organization is throughout the entire galaxy and beyond." He said breaking the truth to her. She looked like she was going to cry, but she stayed strong.  
"Well, I guess that's just the way life is." She said, as she looked down into her half empty glass of orange juice. A few strands of her hair had come out of its tie and were hanging in her face.   
"Hi-ya! Here's the breakfast steak with the home fries, white toast and scrambled eggs." The waitress said as she placed a steaming dish down in front of Jet and then placed another steaming dish down before Alex. "And here's the French toast with the bacon and sausage. Enjoy your meal and call me over when you're ready for the bill!" she said as she walked off.   
"What do you mean 'Oh well, I guess that's just the way life is?' You don't care that he' going to be hunted down?" he asked as he began cutting up his ham steak. Alex had already cut into and eaten her first piece of the large slices of toast.  
"I care, there's just nothing I can do about it to save him. I can't watch him 24/7 or anything, so what's to bother? If he's going to be hunted down, he's going to be hunted down whether I do anything or not." She ate another piece of toast. "I mean, he's practically my only childhood friend, but it's his destiny to be a part of this organization or be hunted and killed by it. I can't do anything to stop it."  
"Will you listen to yourself? You sound so careless about him when he's the only person left you have that's a link to your past, and you're just going t sit around and wait for him to die? That's just wrong Alex, there's something wrong with you if you truly think that." He said as he shoved a huge piece of ham into his mouth.  
"Well, what can I do? It's a whole galaxy after one person and how can I protect him against all of that? It's just like how I couldn't save my parents." She said as she ate some more of her breakfast.   
"Care a little bit!"  
"I do care! What the hell am I supposed to do, walk right up to him and tell him I'm a bounty hunter and there's a crime organization after him because his father was the leader and now he's wanted dead?"  
"I was just suggesting that you could show a little emotion when you're talking about your loved ones dying. Yea, you show it when you talk about your parents, but your only possible link to the past? That should be one of your closest friends!"  
"I'm sorry if I haven't seen him since I was a little girl and I don't feel tied to him like I was tied to my parents. You forget I've lived on the streets for several years with one pair of shoes and one set of clothes. I know what real emotion is and what it's like to be sad, angry, cold, and hungry. All of those feelings and more at once…I would love to see you handle it all." She ended. There was a long silence as both people continued to eat. When the check came, Jet paid it and both he and Alex walked out. He began to head in the direction of the race rack, but to his surprise, Alex was walking the other way, like she was going back to the ship.  
"Where are you going?" he asked her when he realized she wasn't with him.  
"Back to the ship to get my stuff. I figured after that in the diner, you'd want me off the ship." She said. Jet smiled and wrapped his arms around her.  
"Nah, that was nothing. It takes a lot more than that to get me mad enough to throw you off the ship. I'd never do that to you anyway, we're too much alike and I don't know what I'd be like if I had no one to keep me in line!" he joked as they began to head for the track together; arm in arm.  
  
Both Jet and Alex came upon a large structure and an open field. The open field was behind the massive building and had a long strip of tarmac dividing an oval lengthwise. The strip was about a mile long and the oval was the actual track. Jet paid their admission and they entered. They were greeted with the smell of fast food and the bustling crowds.   
"I don't know why, but it feels like I'm back home when I'm here." Alex said as she looked up at the high cement ceiling and the cement supports that held it up.  
"I don't blame you. It does have a warm feeling to it." Jet said as he wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. Alex chuckled and started to pull Jet through the crowd. "Where are we going now?"  
"The wall of fame. Got to go see dad." She said as she pulled him further into the crowd. After dodging two ice cream vendors and tripping over a little old lady, they finally reached the wall that was dedicated to famous racers. Alex's dad had a full segment to himself for breaking the track record for fastest speed. She walked up to it and touched the picture of her father, who was smiling while holding a trophy and check. Another picture was of her dad with her mom and her as a little girl. It was taken out on the track with Alex's mom and dad in front of her dad's racer and Alex sitting on it, smiling, as cutely as a little girl should. The wall was full of pictures of the family and her dad racing. Alex studied each one with a sorrowful smile on her face. She was both happy and sad to be here, for she could look back upon the good times with her father, but also grieve his death. One particular picture caught Jet's eye, it was a close up of Alex cheering her dad on with little Blade also cheering by her side, but there was a figure in the background that stood out. There was a tall and mysterious looking man with silvery white hair that was sort of wavy. It was Vicious!  
"Alex! Come here and look at this!" he said as he called her over. She slowly walked over to look at the picture.  
"Oh yea, that picture. I wish I knew who took it, its good. Blade and me looked so cute cheering like that." She said with a smile. Jet shook his head.  
"No! Look at this guy in the back. The one with the silver hair." He said pointing directly at the picture of Vicious. Alex looked at him carefully through squinted eyes.  
"Hey, he looks a little like…" she began before she was interrupted.  
"Blade?" Jet asked. Alex looked at him and nodded. "You know why?" Jet asked again. Alex shook her head as to say no. "That's Vicious, Blade's father." He said. Alex's eyes widened and she looked intensely at the picture again. She saw the strong similarities, the hair was the most obvious and the nose was too. He looked almost like a clone.   
"That's Blade's father? That's Vicious?" she asked almost frantically. Jet nodded. "That's the guy who killed your friend?" Jet continued to nod.  
"Yea, about a week or so ago. I received notice the day after, a few hours after Faye left. You and Faye would've probably gotten along well."  
"Yea, I suppose."  
"Alex! I knew you'd be here!" called a voice that she knew from earlier in the morning. She turned to see Blade weaving through the crowd. A few people looked at him and then to her. He was wearing black boots, a pair of faded blue jeans, a white t-shirt, and a black leather jacket.  
"Gee, I wonder how you knew! Maybe cause I told you!" she said with a smile as she turned to greet her friend.  
"So, you feel like going to watch a few runs? You know you want to!" he suggested as he began to try and pull her towards a doorway to the grandstands. Alex looked over to Jet.  
"You two go ahead, I'll be back at the ship Alex. Don't be out too late." He teased as he walked off. Alex smiled at him sarcastically before turning back to her friend.  
"Yea lets go. It'll be hard to try and stay in the stands, I'm so used to the pits and the staging lanes, you'll have to tie me down." She said as she walked off into the stands with Blade. 


	6. A Blast From the Past and the Living Dea

They went out and sat down in the shade underneath the overhang and waited for the next racer to jump off the line.  
"So, what brings you back here? You didn't just come back for the track, did you?" Blade asked her as two top-fuelers lined up.   
"I did. It's been so long since I've been to any track; it's like being home here. The people are friendly and I'm around the things that I loved. This was what my family and I lived for; we lived for the smell of burning fuel and the high temperatures of the track on summer days." She said as the racers got the signal to ready. The lights went down on the Christmas tree and they were off down the half-mile straightaway. Both Alex and Blade looked on as the racer in the far lane clocked in with an even 10 seconds.  
"Wow, they're getting faster. Who knows when they'll break pop's record." She said as the other dialed in only a few tenths of a second later.  
"How fast was your dad again? He was in the low sevens wasn't he?" Blade asked. Alex nodded.  
"Yea, dad had a seven-two. I don't think anyone will beat that anytime soon."  
"Well, there was that one guy who had a seven-four…"  
"What?!" Alex asked frantically and nervously. "A SEVEN-FOUR??!!"  
"Yea, you didn't hear about it? The guy dialed in a seven-four but lost consciousness in the last ¼ of the track. He was in a coma for a week and a half." Blade said.  
"Wow, when was this?" Alex asked in amazement. Blade seemed to be thinking about it for a few moments.  
"It had to have been about three months ago. Since then, the guy has been after your dads data from the runs so he could find out how to beat his time."  
"And up now in the far lane," the loudspeaker boomed, "We have Pidge Bordeaux with a quick time trial to test his new transmission after he blew his last one up a month ago attempting a stupid stunt."  
"PIDGE!!!" Alex screamed with a huge smile.  
"Oh yea! Your dad and Pidge were good friends, I almost forgot about that. Yea, he blew another trans last month trying to pull a 360. That makes 16 since January he's trashed."  
"Pidge, you psycho…whatcha gonna do Pidge?" she muttered to herself with a huge smile on her face as the car leapt off the line. The reaction time was good as the sleek little craft sped down the track. The timer recorded an eight-six as it gradually slowed and turned back into the pits.   
"Wow, an eight-six! He's gotten better, maybe he won't blow this trans since it's giving him good times." Blade said sarcastically with a roll of his eyes. Alex jumped up and hopped down from the stands. "Where you going!?" Blade asked as soon as he saw her hit the ground.  
"I'm going to go see Pidge, wanna come?" she asked as he leapt down beside her.  
"Yea, why not. Let's go." He said as he hooked his arm around hers and they walked off towards the pits together. They reached the gates and walked through. The smell of exhaust was like roses to Alex, so familiar. She continued to walk through with Blade she caught a glimpse of the yellow and black racer that Pidge drove and headed straight for it. She got closer to his area and saw the tall, salt and pepper haired man leaning in checking the engines.  
"Now Alex, behave yourself." Blade said as Alex smiled widely.  
"Hey, I'm always the one who tells you to behave!" she lectured. Blade smiled at her.  
"Yea, you're right…" Alex called out to the older man.  
"MISTER PIDGIE!!!" She practically screeched as if she was a little girl again. The man looked up and around before laying eyes on the tall, blond girl who was smiling at him. He looked at her strangely before saying anything.  
"Is that you little Lexis Bondora?" He asked as he squinted his eyes to see. She smiled and nodded happily as she ran up to him and hugged him. Even though his hands were greasy, he hugged her back, just not touching her with his grimy hands.  
"Mr. Pidgie, it's been so long! How are you?" she asked.  
"Ah, I've been good…could be better though." He said with a sigh and a smile. "Where've you been? Everyone's been looking all over the place for you and they couldn't find you."  
"I got put in an orphanage back on earth but then ran away when I turned 13. It was such a bad place, I just up and ran off one day."  
"Alex! You didn't tell me that!" Blade jumped in.  
"It didn't seem important at the time. Besides, that's my past and I can't change it now." She said glancing around and checking under the hood of the old man's racer.  
"Ah, yes. I figured you'd be checking up on that." He said as he leaned back over the car.   
"Yea, I hear tell you destroyed 16 transmissions in less than a year, is this true Pidge?" she asked him like he was in for a beating.  
"It wasn't all me!" he said. There was a pause as Alex glared at him. "Okay, yes, I blew 16 trans' since December." He said lowering his eyes to the ground.  
"You need to be much more careful mister, or else you aren't gonna be around a whole lot longer!" she said attempting to warn him.  
"Yea, yea…so wait, who's your boyfriend?" he asked as he wiped his hands clean with a rag.  
"Pidge, you remember Blade! The little white-haired boy that always played tag with me?" she said trying to get him to remember. The older man thought for a moment.  
"Ah yes! The scrawny little bugger that always played with my ratchets! Looks like you put some weight on boy, and some muscle too." He said joking with him. Blade frowned as both Alex and the older man chuckled.   
"Yea, it's pretty funny…I make more money that you so I wouldn't be laughing old man." Blade said sourly. Alex wrapped her arms around him in an attempt to comfort him.  
"Oh calm down Blade. He was only teasing…don't be such a brat." She said with a smile. Blade rolled his eyes as Pidge gradually slowed his laughing to a slight giggle.  
"Alright…whatever." He said with a sigh.   
"Hey Alex, you wanna see the pictures from last weekend's race?" he asked as he wiped his hands clean and reached into the trailer. He pulled out a small box and opened it to show Alex the pictures. There had to have been close to three dozen photos stacked up in the box as Alex pulled them out. She flipped through them and then placed them back into their box.  
"Hey, wait!" Blade protested as he reached for them. He pulled them back out and flipped through them until he came to a picture of Pidge's racer at the line. It was taken from probably somewhere halfway up in the stands and there was a tall man with puffy greenish hair looking up towards the top of the stands as if he was looking for someone. He wasn't meant to be in the picture, he was obviously in the way but the picture was taken with him in the lower left-hand corner of the shot. Blade pointed to the man. "I recognize him!" Alex and Pidge looked closely at the picture.  
"Oh yea, I met him last week. He seemed slightly disoriented but was a pretty nice guy." Pidge said as he took the picture from Blade and looked it over. "I guess he was accidentally in the frame when the picture was taken."  
"Where did you see him, Blade?" Alex asked as she looked at the picture again.   
"I can't remember. All I can remember is that I've seen him before and I can't remember where…maybe he just has one of those faces that you think as someone else." Blade said as he scratched his head.   
"Yea, he came up to me after that run, actually, and just started talking about racing and what I use in my racer to get it so fast. So I helped him out. He said he has a Swordfish II and his name was…ah damn, I forget what he said his name was. It began with an 'S' I remember that. He said he was sticking around for another few days and then heading out." Pidge said as he told the story of how he met the guy. Alex took one last look at the picture before putting it back into the box.  
"Oh well, another friend for you. Congrats Pidge." She said as she handed it back to him.  
"Yea well, he was such a nice guy. Wait! That was his name!" he practically yelled.  
"Congratulations, you're losing your memory Pidge. That means you're getting old!" Blade said sarcastically.   
"He said his name was Spike." Pidge said with a smile. Alex's eyes went wide as blade still stood there looking the old man over sarcastically still. "His name was Spike Spiegel." 


	7. Secrets Revealed

Alex could feel herself go pale. How was it that Pidge met Spike only a few days earlier if Spike was killed two weeks ago? Was he still alive?  
"Pidge, can I borrow your pictures for a while?" she asked him as the color slowly returned to her face. He still held the box in his hands.  
"Sure, you just have to return them to me the next time you see me. I'll be here in another two weeks so come by then and drop them off."  
"I'll try. I might not be around, but I'll definitely try." She said as she took the box from him and pocketed it. She wanted to get back the Bebop and Jet as fast as she could and show him that his friend was still alive.   
"What do you mean you might not be around?" Pidge asked.  
"She works now. She travels with a guy and they collect old musical instruments." Blade said for Alex before she could answer for herself.  
"Ah, taking after your mother and her musical interests. Alright, just be sure you return them to me as soon as you could." He said with a smile.  
"Actually, I only need one, just the picture with the guy you met." She said as she pulled the box out again and started flipping through them to find the one she was looking for.  
"Ah, you like the guy, eh? G'head and keep the picture, that's alright with me. It's only a shot of my racer anyway. The best of both worlds I suppose." He said as he took the box of pictures and left her holding the picture of Pidge's racer and Spike. She smiled and hugged him.  
"Thanks Pidge, you're awesome." She said as she put the picture in her pocket. She caught a glance of the rather disappointed look on Blade's face as he stood with crossed arms.  
"Aww, you're welcome sweetie. Now I got to get ready for my next run so I'll talk to you soon. You have my number if you need me." he said as he leaned back on his ship.   
"I don't…" she said nervously. He reached into the cockpit of his racer and pulled out a card.  
"It's technically a business card. My number is on there so call if you need anything, alright Lex?" he said giving one last hug.  
"Alright Pidge. Take care!" she said as he turned and went back to work on his ship with a smile. Alex pocketed the business card into the same pocket as the picture and walked off with Blade by her side.  
"So, where do you want to go now?" he asked with a smile as he placed his arm around her shoulder. Alex couldn't help but smile.  
"Back to the ship to show Jet the picture I got from Pidge. It's important. You weren't jealous back there, were you?" she asked with a suspicious and teasing smile.  
"Me, jealous? Nah! Such a cute girl like you and a model like me were meant for each other, even if we stay just friends." He said. Just then, someone accidentally pushed Blade into Alex and hit her hip, right where her, or Spike's, gun was. Both Alex and Blade felt it. There was a pair of 'Ows' and rubbing where they were both hurt. Alex realized the gun was there and tried to dismiss it.  
"You all right?" she asked her friend.  
"Yea, what was that? What do you have in there?" he asked trying to pull back the coat and see what was hidden.  
"Nothing, I think it was just the keys in my pocket is all. So you want to go back and see the ship? It's kind of messy and we don't have any instruments at the time aside from mine, but you're more than welcome to come back and check it out for a little while." She said as she covered herself with the coat even further. He seemed to think about it for a little bit as they continued walking.   
"Are you sure your friend won't mind? He seemed a little affronted by me earlier at the restaurant." Blade said cautiously. Alex shook her head and smiled.  
"No! He was just a little surprised by you saying something about the Red Dragon. He used to know someone who worked in it."  
"Really?" Blade asked growing interested. "What is the Red Dragon? Do you know?" Alex knew it was a crime syndicate, but she didn't want to tell Blade that.  
"I don't know. Jet really doesn't talk about it much." She said giving the hint that it wasn't a good thing. Blade picked up on it and looked at her a little awkwardly.  
"Really? I figured that it would be like an organization of rich collectors or something. The way mom always talked of him, that's sort of what I was led to believe." He said as they continued to walk towards the exits to leave.  
"Do you remember him at all or anything?" she said as they entered the building to go through the gates. Blade shook his head.  
"No, I don't even have a picture." He said. Alex remembered this morning how Jet showed her the picture of Vicious in one of her dad's pictures.   
"Blade, I know where you can see a picture of your dad." She said as she pulled him by his arm over to the wall of fame.  
"Show me!" he said excited and enthusiastic. He went through the crowd that Alex pulled him through to the wall of her father's pictures. She looked around for the one that Vicious was in.  
"He's in one of these…" she said as she glanced at every picture. Then she found the picture of her and Blade when they were young, cheering from the stands for Alex's father.  
"Which one? Did you find it yet?" he asked. She was scouring the picture with her eyes to try and find him. It only took her a few moments to find the tall silver-haired man.  
"THERE!" She said as she pointed directly to him. Blade rushed over and looked at it carefully. He saw the man that was his father. He caressed the picture of him with his hand. Though the picture was intended for he and Alex, Vicious, who was roughly the size of a pencil in the picture, managed to be captured in the shot.  
"This…this was my father?" he asked Alex as he looked up at her. She nodded, but without a smile. She knew Vicious was a ruthless killer and she couldn't bear to break it to Blade. "Alex, you know something and you aren't telling me. if it's about my dad, I beg you to tell me all you know."   
"I…I don't know what you're talking about." She said attempting to smile. Her attempt was unsuccessful.  
"Alex, I can tell by the look in your eyes. I've known you since we were kids and I think I can tell when you're hiding something." He said with a pseudo-smile. He took her head in his hands. He forced her to look at him. Tears began to well in her eyes as she looked at the face that was practically the twin of the image of Vicious.  
"I don't want to tell you because I know it'll hurt you. I can't hurt you Blade, you're may best friend." She said through her tears. He let her go and wipe her tears away. she sat down on a nearby bench.  
"I understand Alex, but I need to know about my father. Where I can find him and what is this Red Dragon Syndicate he wants me to take over? Please tell me, I really need to know." He said as he took a seat next to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. With eyes red and teary, Alex looked up to him and wiped her tears away.  
"I can tell you as much as I know, but you'll have to ask Jet about the rest. He know far more about him that I do." She said. She stood up and pulled him up too. "We have to get going back to the Bebop to find Jet, he'll help you find out more about your dad, but there's something I think you should know before we get there." She said as they exited the building and began walking the streets towards the docks. They ducked down an empty side street and continued walking.  
"Well? What is it?" he asked her. She stopped and looked at him almost expressionless. He looked confused.  
"Blade, you know how I'd never hurt a fly, right?" she asked. Blade nodded. "Well, things have changed since then and I've changed. I'm not the goody goodie I was before." she said as she tried to lead up to her point.  
"Are you trying to tell me you're a bounty hunter or something?" he said with a slight chuckle and a smile. Alex stood there still emotionless. Blade took the hint and his eyes went wide. "You are, aren't you?" She nodded.  
"Yes, Both Jet and I are bounty hunters. The truth is that the other day, I was out on the docks on earth and he began talking to me. He asked me to join him as he traveled the universe but that was before I knew. I went with him, found out he was a bounty hunter, but stayed anyway. He's such a nice person; I decided not to base my opinions on how he makes his money, but how he's kind and funny. He didn't have to take me onboard, he could've just left me to continue roaming the streets as the homeless young woman I was." She said telling her story. He looked baffled and in disbelief.  
"I don't get it. You, of all people, are a bounty hunter? Alex, you won't be able to do it!" he said with extreme concern displayed upon his face.   
"You may not think so, but of all the years I spent on the streets on my own, I can handle anything. The world has been cruel to me, but now it's my turn." She said as she looked up to the blue sky above. The white clouds just floated by in their own world, seeming carefree.   
"Alex, please don't do this. You aren't a bounty hunter! The Alex I knew and loved wasn't." he said. He realized his words and then quickly held his hand over his mouth. She looked at him.  
"What do you mean 'the Alex I knew and loved'? What are you talking about Blade?" she asked him with eyes narrowed.   
"I guess the secret's out. Since you shared your secret with me, I suppose I'll tell you mine." He said scratching the back of his head.  
"What?" she asked.  
"Ever since we were kids, I've always had some sort of feelings towards you, now that you're back, those feelings have returned and are stronger than ever. As a little kid, I figured we'd be best friends forever. As an adolescent, I always dreamed of you returning and the two of us dating. Now that you have returned, it makes me wonder, what would it be like to tie you down? Would we ever me happy as husband and wife?" 


	8. An Explanation for Blade

Alex just wanted to cry as she thought of what he just said and what Jet told her earlier. She remembers him telling her how if the Red Dragon had a leader, they'd come looking for Blade to kill him. She didn't want to see that happen.  
"Blade, we have to go and talk to Jet." She said pushing her emotions aside for now and beginning to walk quickly towards the docks again. He reached out and grabbed her arm, as she whirled around, Blade caught sight of the gun on her belt loop. He was shocked by it and let her go. She continued walking and he soon followed behind. A wind began to blow, so she buttoned up the coat all the way and walked with her hair flowing and her hands in her pockets. He followed behind her walking tall, as if he was proud to be seen with her. They walked a short time until they emerged out onto the windy docks. The seawater and the wind combined to create a spray every time a wave broke. Alex led Blade out on the rickety wooden pier and towards the large red interstellar ship with the word 'Bebop' spray-painted on the side in black. She walked up to the door and banged on it loudly three times. A few moments later, it opened to reveal Jet in an apron holding a sauté pan.   
"Alex! Back so soon? I was getting some sauce together for tonight's dinner." He said stirring whatever was in the pan with a wooden spoon.  
"Blade is here to lean more about Vicious." She said expressionless as she walked past Jet and into the ship. She kept walking until both Jet and Blade could no longer see her leaving them both at the door.  
"She said you'd tell me everything you knew about him. She told me she'd tell me what she knew, but I guess after I told her about the feelings I had for her she just didn't want to hear it." he explained.  
"Oh, well something must be eating her right now, don't worry about it. She'll be fine by about seven or so. Come in though, won't you? Have a seat in the kitchen and I can tell you what I know." Jet said inviting the boy inside. Blade followed Jet through the ship to the living area where there were a few pieces of furniture. Alex was lounged across the bright yellow couch reading a book, not paying attention to the two men coming in and heading into the kitchen area. She looked angry and upset at the same time as she read. Blade was starting to worry. He took a seat at the table near the stove where Jet was cooking.  
"Alex, we got a call from a musician over on earth about a 19th century cello, he'll have it for us as early as next week." Jet said not knowing that she told Blade they were bounty hunters. Alex just glared at him over the top of the couch for a moment but returned to her reading.  
"She told me the truth about you two. How you're bounty hunters and you met last night." Blade explained. Jet nodded and smiled.  
"She did, alright, at least that'll clear things up a little." He said.   
"So did you know my father directly?" Blade asked becoming slightly distraught. Jet looked at him. He knew Blade was going to be upset, but Alex should've at least warned him.  
"He killed my partner." Jet said. Blade was surprised.  
"He what? I'm sure it was just an accident!" He said trying to clear his father's tarnished name.  
"It was no accident. The story is, they worked together for a crime syndicate, the Red Dragon. My partner, Spike, met a woman by the name of Julia and he was happy with her. So happy, he faked his own death to leave the organization to be with her. Your father met her and then she was in love with him. The love was still there between Spike and Julia, but it was also there between Julia and Vicious. Spike and Vicious found out about each other and began to fight over her. Because Vicious was still in the Red Dragon, he told them that Spike was still alive and there was a woman involved. At first he told only Julia that if she could kill him, she'd be released from the Red Dragon without complications but when Julia realized that Vicious lived up to his name, she ran back to Spike to try and kill him out of love, so that he wouldn't have to face Vicious, but wound up trying to run off with him and start over. Red Dragon found them and as they were trying to get away, Julia was shot and she died is Spike's arms." Just then there was the slam of a door. Both Jet and Blade turned to see that Alex was no longer on the couch. "She must really be upset, the poor girl."   
"I don't know why she's like this. After I told her how I really felt about her, she just wouldn't react to anything." Blade said confused and growing more worried.  
"Was it something that would depress her? Did you tell her you didn't like her or something?" Jet asked him. Blade shook his head.  
"No, quite the opposite actually. I told her I loved her and I dreamed of us being happy as husband and wife." He said.  
"Oh no." Jet said as he looked to the door as he heard her guitar playing.  
"What? What did I do?" Blade asked concerned.  
"After Julia died in Spike's arms, he knew it was the work of Vicious so he went off with the intent of killing him. At this point, your father became power hungry and killed the leaders of the Red Dragon and took over. He was the leader and when Spike returned to find this, it only made him angrier. The two of them battled it out and it was a draw."  
"So my father is still alive?" Blade asked enthusiastically. Jet frowned.  
"They killed each other. Red Dragon has no leader. That's why he sent you the letter. He had been plotting the takeover of the syndicate for a long time. So he sent you the letter saying that he was the leader already before he actually took over. The problem is now, that since there is no leader, anyone can waltz in and claim leadership. The only way the leadership can be passed is down through family. The leaders before Vicious had no families so Vicious killed them and claimed leadership. Now you're supposed to be the one heading the Red Dragon since you're Vicious' son. No one knows he had a family; he left you and your mother and joined. Now that he's dead and no one knows of you, anyone can go in there and claim leadership. The only problem is that if they discover that you are his son, they'll either force you into becoming the leader or the person that is leading them will come out and find you."  
"So what's the big deal? I can tell them I don't want to be involved in the organization and have someone else lead them." Blade said.  
"The big deal is that if you don't head the syndicate, they'll kill you. If they have a leader already and they find out, they'll come out and find you and then kill you. That's why Alex is upset and that's why she won't talk to you about anything relating to a relationship between you and her. She knows that either way, you'll be killed and she doesn't want to see another loved one die." Jet explained. Blade didn't know what to say. He didn't know that it was this serious. Although he now knew why Alex was upset, he didn't know what to do. Should he go back and head the Red Dragon or should he wait until they come for him? He didn't want to wait around and find out but he didn't want to walk into his own death either.   
"Jet, what should I do? Any advice is welcome." Blade asked.  
"My suggestion is to act like nothing is wrong. At the first sign of danger, contact us and we'll come and get you. We'll hide you and try and get you to fake death. That's all I can think of." He said.  
"Thanks. I'd better get going; I don't want anyone back home to worry. My dogs are like that." He said trying to lighten the mood.  
"Yea, I know how they can get sometimes." Jet smiled as he thought of Ein for a moment.  
"Thanks a lot Jet. And when you talk to Alex, tell her I still love her." He said smiling. Jet chuckled.  
"Alright, I will. Good luck to you, Blade." He said as he watched the silver-haired young man walk out the door down the corridor. He turned around and saw Alex sanding in the open doorway to her room staring at him. Her hair was hanging in her face and she still looked upset.  
"Sounds like you two are getting to be good friends." She said as she looked around the open space of the living area. Jet only smiled.  
"He sends his love." He said. Alex looked at him for a moment before looking to the floor.  
"I wish he wouldn't." She said sadly. "He knows not what he does." 


	9. Many Happy Returns

Jet felt bad for Alex. He didn't know if she loved him in return, but there was definitely some sort of emotion there. After all, she went as far as to tell him she was a bounty hunter and she acted as if everything in her world was going to hell in a hand basket.   
"Come and have something to drink. There's soda and one of those stupid little water filter thingies in the refrigerator if you want purified water. Faye bought it and said it was healthy, so we kept it here." he said. Alex walked over and grabbed a glass out of the cabinet by the stove where Jet was cooking his sauce. She opened the cupboard and realized he was looking at her. "Are you alright?" he asked. He seemed concerned.  
"I could be better." She said. Jet left his sauce cooking on the stove and gave Alex a hug. She could feel her eyes filling with tears.   
"Alex, it's alright, he loves you but if you don't love him, that's alright too." He said. She couldn't help but smile.  
"Thanks Jet, you're great." She said as they let go and he went back to cooking his sauce for dinner. "Oh yea I almost forgot!" she said as she put her glass down on the counter, jumped over the couch and ran into her room. Jet was surprised when she did this. He saw her return clutching a photo. She jumped the couch again and ran up to him and handed him the picture.   
"Nice racer! Who's is it?" he asked taking a quick glance.  
"A friend of my dad's but look closely at the picture. Particularly at the bottom left." She said Jet looked closer and then his eyes went wide.  
"That's Spike!" he exclaimed. Alex smiled and nodded. "Where did you get this?!"  
"The guy who owns that racer gave me the picture. Get this; he told me that this picture was taken this past weekend. You said Spike was killed two weeks ago! SPIKE IS ALIVE!" She said happily.  
"The crazy bastard is alive and he hasn't come back yet. He'd better be back soon…" He said as he scratched his head and smiled. Just then, there was a loud crash from outside. It sounded like something had splashed into the water.  
"What the hell was that?!" Alex asked in surprise. The noise caught her off guard and made her jump. Jet turned the stove off and left his sauce on the stove.  
"Good question. I think right about now would be a good time to teach you about how to aim and fire a gun." He said as he grabbed his and headed for the door. Alex pulled hers from her belt loop and cocked it. Jet looked at her. "How did you know to do that?" he asked.  
"I dunno, I saw it in a bunch of movies and TV shows when I was younger. I think all I need is practice since all I watched were the shows about gun slinging. All the boys watched it constantly." She said as she grasped the gun with both of her hands, extended her arms holding the gun in front of her ready to shoot. Jet was impressed.  
"Alright, just keep quiet." He said as he readied his gun to shoot. They quietly walked to the door and stood on either side of it so that they could both get clear shots when they opened it. Jet slowly counted to three and on three, the door opened with a whoosh and they pointed their guns out the door.  
"WAAAH!!!!" Screamed a woman who looked about Alex's age with short purple hair, a yellow half-top and matching booty shorts, and a red sweater tied around her shoulders.  
"God damn you Faye! What did I tell you about dropping in without a warning?" Jet scolded as he lowered his gun. Alex was slightly confused.  
"What? My communications were damaged and I couldn't get a hold of you! Who the hell is the girl and why is she wearing my clothes?!" she asked becoming angry.  
"Oh, Faye, this is my new partner Alex. Alex, this is Faye Valentine, one of my previous partners and a former bounty head." He introduced. Alex put her gun down and extended her right hand to shake Faye's as she smiled.  
"Nice to meet you, I've heard a lot about you." She said trying to be nice. Faye didn't look too pleased but shook her hand anyway.  
"Yea, alright, but why are you wearing my clothes?" she asked rather annoyed.  
"Oh, Jet said it was alright until I was able to go out and get my own clothes. I'm sorry if wasn't supposed to wear them." She said attempting to apologize for Jet's actions. Faye smiled at her.  
"Oh, if Jet said so that's alright because he's just boneheaded like that to go and say it's alright for you to use my clothes. But I don't suppose it's that big of a deal so whatever." She said as she let herself into the ship. As she continued walking into the living area, Jet looked at her.  
"What do you want Faye? I told you when you left you weren't coming back unless you were coming to get your things to leave for good. What do you want?" he asked.  
"Well, I thought it'd be a nice goodbye if I came and you fixed my ship one last time. In return I'd give you your dog back." she said as she picked up a magazine and flounced down on the couch.  
"What do you mean you'd give my dog back? Ein took off with Ed and who knows where they are by now?" he said. Faye smiled and looked at him. Suddenly the door opened again and a child walked through holding a dog.  
"Jet! Both Ed and Ein have missed you so they came back to the Bebop to stay!" Said the child. It sounded like a little girl, but looked like a boy  
"Ed! Ein!" he said surprised. The dog barked and leapt out of the girl's arms. It ran right for Jet and then up into his waiting arms.   
"Jet? Who's the pretty girl?" Ed asked as she tilted her head to the side. Her red, puffy hair reminded her of the picture of Spike. She was definitely cute.  
"Oh, Alex! This is Ed, our computer expert. Ed, this is Alex, she's my new partner." Jet said introducing the two girls. Ed walked up to Alex, who still held the gun in her hand but it was down at her side by now. Ed smiled up at her and then bowed.   
"Welcome aboard the great red rooster!" She said with a toothy grin. Alex giggled.  
"Thank you, and welcome home to you!" Alex said as she too bowed and smiled. Ein barked at her. "Aww, you must be Jet's dog! So cute!" Alex reached down and scratched behind the dog's ears.  
"That he is; that's Ein!" Ed said as she sat on the floor beside the dog.   
"Well hello there, Ein. Welcome home!" Alex smiled. She could see Faye looking at her dissatisfied with her presence.   
"Jet, how long is she going to stay here? There isn't enough room for all of us you know." Faye said trying to find a way to avoid a confrontation with Alex.  
"She's here for good. She's my new partner since Spike is gone at the moment." He said with a smile. "So I'd be sure to make nice with her and be friendly or you'll be living in hell here until you decide to leave." She looked at him evilly.   
"Fine, but she can't wear my clothes! They're mine!" she said as she stomped off to her room and slammed the door behind her.  
"Ah, it's going to be difficult living with three girls, what do you think Ein?" Jet said as he looked down at the little dog. It looked up at him and barked twice. Ed, Alex, and Jet got a laugh out of the action.  
"Well, I take it that Faye doesn't like me very much." Alex said as she stood up beside Jet. He nodded.  
"Yea, I think so. In that case, we'd better head out and get you some clothes before she has another conniption. You up for a shopping trip Ed?" Jet asked the young girl. Ed looked up and smiled.  
"Yes-sir-oni cap'n spumoni!" she said as she sprang to her feet and saluted him with her right hand. Alex chuckled silently.  
"Alright then." He said as he reached into his back pocket and counted to see how much money he had on him. "FAYE! Do you need anything?" He yelled. There was no response.   
"I guess she's mad?" Alex asked.  
"Probably. Well, we'll need to make a quick stop at the bank and then we can get you some clothes. Just remind me we need food too." He said as he pocketed his wallet. The two girls followed Jet out the door and onto the docks. By now, Alex had put her gun back on her belt loop and pulled Spike's trench coat on again. Ed had grasped her hand and was swinging it as she walked at Alex's side smiling happily.  
"Purty Alex?" Ed asked as she looked up at her. Alex looked down at her smiling.  
"Silly Ed?" Alex asked. Ed smiled.  
"Are you Jet's girlfriend?" Alex couldn't help but laugh at the question.  
"No, she's not. She's my new partner Ed, so just leave it there." Jet quickly snapped.  
"Aww, Jet honey, I thought you loved me!" Alex said as she leaned onto Jet's shoulder. He looked at her somewhat blushed. Both Alex and Ed erupted into a fit of laughter as they came off the docks and began to walk through the city. They walked past a newspaper stand with magazines for sale.  
"Ooh! Blade McGowan!" Ed said as she ran up to the stand and snatched a magazine. This surprised Alex.  
"Ed, you like Blade?" Alex asked. Ed looked at Alex as she clutched the magazine.  
"What girl in her right mind wouldn't?! He's so cute and adorable and muscle-y!" she said as she rubbed her cheek on the magazine cover. Alex took a look at the cover and saw it was a picture of Blade shirtless running a hand through his silver locks and his other resting on his hip. He wore a sultry smile across his lips and his eyes were halfway closed, as if narrowed in mystery. Alex could feel tears gathering in the corners of her eyes.  
"Ed, we have to keep on going. Buy it if you'd like." She said as she turned away and tried to keep walking. Someone caught her arm.  
"Alex, are you alright?" Jet asked as she looked to him. It was he who grabbed her arm.  
"Yea, I'm good. I just want to get some clothes and get back to the ship." She said wiping the tears away.  
"Alex, are you okay?" Ed asked still clutching the magazine. Alex smiled at the girl and nodded.  
"Yea, can we get going though?" she asked. Ed nodded and put the magazine down and followed Alex and Jet.   
"Do you like Blade, Alex?" Ed asked her. Alex smiled and looked down at her.  
"Of course, who could resist him?" she said as they walked down the sidewalk. 


	10. Could It Be? Spike?

That day, the three went into several different clothing stores and came out with at least one bag per store. They stopped in a butcher shop before they returned to the ship and picked up a few ham steaks. It was roughly 5:30 when they returned and found that Faye had refueled her ship and left again, leaving Ein in the kitchen waiting for some food.  
"Ein! We have returned with the booty!!!" Ed said in a pirate's tone of voice as she held the steaks high above her head.   
"Hah! Ed said booty!" Alex giggled as she carefully carried all of her bags to her room and tossed them inside. She returned and tossed the coat she was wearing across the couch.   
"Wait a second…Alex, were you in Spike's room?" Jet asked. Alex shook her head.  
"No, why?" Jet motioned for Alex to look over at his door that was cracked open. He went over to it and peeked inside, Alex was at his heels. He stepped inside and glanced around. Alex followed behind him, wanting to see the interior of the room. It was full of guns, gun parts, and newspapers or magazines.   
"Someone was in here." he said as he glanced around at the mess.  
"It was probably just Faye. Looking for some money or something." Alex said as she looked around. Jet's eyes latched onto something and he shook his head.  
"It wasn't Faye." He said as he smiled.  
"How do you know?"  
"Faye doesn't have the key to Spike's private gun stash." He said as the door of a locker swung open when Jet pulled on it. The lock and door were still intact which meant no one broke into it. inside, there were several guns and two empty spaces. The guns were shined and beautiful, almost like they were jewelry or something. Jet's smile went wide as he swung the door open all the way. A fluttering movement caught his eye and forced him to look to the inside of the door. There was a folded piece of paper taped to the inside with 'Jet' scrawled on it in black ink. Jet ripped it off and opened it hastily to read it. He scanned the paper and then smiled.  
"What?" Alex asked when she saw his smile grow wide.   
"He says that Pidge has a fast car and he's not coming home until he nails a big bounty." He chuckled. "Stubborn dumb ass."  
"What's a big bounty to him?" Alex asked as she tried to get a glance at the note.  
"At least 10 million. He won't come back until he got one over 10." Jet said as he crumpled up the note. "Apparently he saw the picture of Pidge's car I left on the table out in the kitchen and he said something about it. he said he was coming back to get some supplies and he's sorry for making me worry, but he'll be back soon." Jet tossed the paper into the mess and walked out of the room. Alex still stood there staring at the firearms that were sitting there in the locker. She realized Jet had left so she also quickly exited. She went to her room and began going through her new purchases. Ed also went with Alex and helped her with her clothes. Jet fired up the indoor grill and cooked up the steaks he had bought while they were out. Ein sat nearby and watched him. As the steaks grew closer to being done, Jet heard the sound of Alex playing her guitar yet again. This time, it was another happy and bouncy song and Ed sang along. It was a crazy song sung about the crew of the Bebop; the cowboys of space. Ed finished the song and both she and Alex laughed.   
"Guys, the steaks are almost done!" Jet called with a smile.  
"Alright, we're coming." Alex called from her room. Ed came racing out like an airplane with her arms stretched out like wings. She zoomed around the living area as Alex came out of her room. She was watching Ed zip around as she leaned her shoulder on the doorway. "A little ball of energy she is, isn't she?" Alex asked with a grin. Jet nodded.  
"That she is. Now after dinner, how's about some target practice?" he asked.   
"Alright, sounds good." She said as she walked over to the table and sat down. Ed soon came to the table and sat ready to eat. Dinner was filled with the interesting voyages of Ed and Ein, and how Alex came to the ship. After dinner, as agreed, Alex and Jet had some target practice. They shot cans and bottles off the edge of the docks. They shot for about an hour before returning inside and locking down for the night. Ed slept on the floor in Alex's room until she could get her room back and Jet slept in his own room for a change. Things were finally starting to look good for Alex.   
  
Days passed and gradually, Jet and Alex went out and cashed in several bounty heads. They were finally on the up side and were becoming richer by the day. Alex was slowly but surely becoming quite the sharpshooter and Jet was beginning to take lessons from Alex on how to play the harmonica. Ed often only sang along with them and had even gotten into playing with a few drums Alex had found for cheap. She didn't play them well enough for Alex to play along with her, but eventually, she'd take time to teach Ed too. Roughly two weeks after Alex had come aboard the Bebop, she felt totally at home and like the member of a family on the ship. Jet could pick up his harmonica and play without a problem and occasionally Alex and he would play together, always being interrupted by Ed and her drums. Alex still used Spike's gun and had no problems with aiming and shooting anything, even people.   
"Alex!" Jet called one evening from the kitchen area. She poked her head out and looked at him.  
"Ye-o?" she asked. She looked like a totally different person than from that of the girl she was two weeks earlier living on the streets. She had put more weight on and didn't look malnourished anymore. Her skin had turned from the pale skin tone it was to a healthy and deep tan that complimented her bright blue eyes and blond hair.   
"Are you cooking this or am I?" he asked her as he held up a container of pork chops.  
"Make the stuffing and I'll stuff 'em and grill 'em." She said as she disappeared into her room again. Jet sighed and began pulling out the ingredients he needed to make the stuffing. He measured things into bowls and was mixing them when Alex returned. She was wearing a pair of black samurai hakama pants and a white tank top. Over this, she wore a red silk kimono that went almost to her ankles. Her hair was clipped up and she was barefoot. Her toenails and fingernails were black and she was humming to herself. She jumped over the couch and walked into the kitchen.  
"You know, one of these days, you're going to fall and bust your ass jumping over that couch." Jet scolded as she pulled the pork chops out of the refrigerator and put them into some brine she had made earlier.   
"Yea, yea. I ain't dead yet so don't worry about it." she said as she tossed them back into the fridge. Before she shut the door, she pulled out a bottle of water and began to drink it.  
"You young people now a days, I'm telling ya." He said with a sigh as he finished mixing the concoction. "What do you want me to do with this?"  
"Wrap it with plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge. The pork needs to sit for about an hour before I can stuff it and grill it." she said as she walked over and jumped onto the couch.   
"An hour?! It's getting late and we need to eat!" Jet said.  
"While you wait, here's a newsflash from TV Ed!" said the little red headed girl wearing the goggles in front of the computer.  
"Whatcha got Ed?" Jet asked as he walked over.  
"We're looking at a big one Cap'n Black!" She said. "20 million woolongs for an ex-con!"   
"Wow, an ex-con…nothing too new, right?" Alex said as she leaned in and looked at the picture.   
"Convicted of what Ed?" Jet asked.   
"Zeke Diboa has been convicted of 20 counts of aggravated assault and rape. 40 total! He's been rumored to be around Tijuana a lot lately. If he's not there, he's on earth."  
"A pretty 20 million on his pretty head. What a shame. At least I can understand why he's racked up so many." Alex said as she gazed into the eyes of the bounty head hey were going to go after. He was absolutely gorgeous. The long, straight blond hair and the deepest blue eyes. He looked like supermodel, which brought Blade to mind.   
"Ed, get all the information on him and tell me whether I should head for T.J. or earth. " Jet said as he walked out of the living area and up to the navigations or piloting area. Alex sat and watched the screen for a moment.  
"He's cute! What do you think Ed?" Alex asked.  
"No one can compare to Blade!!" she said with a smile. In a few quick seconds, the picture of the new bounty head and Blade were side by side. "Who do you pick?"  
"Definitely Blade. No contest." Alex smiled. Ed typed some more and came up with earth on the screen.  
"Bonsai! Jet should head for earth!" she exclaimed.  
"Alright, I'll go tell him." Alex said as she wandered out of the living area in search of Jet. She heard yelling and began running, hoping Jet was alright. She got to the doorway into the navigations and piloting areas were and stopped.  
"God damn you Spike! Come back here before I come looking for you!" He yelled.  
"Can't do that Jet, I'm after a 20 million ex-con. I'll come back when I get him." Said someone through a computer. Alex walked up to see whom it was that Jet was yelling at.  
"Spike, come back here! We'll get him together and keep the bounty for ourselves! Faye's gone so we don't have to worry about her running off with the money. Alex doesn't use the money at all!"  
"Alex? Who's Alex, Jet?" this Spike person asked somewhat suspiciously. Alex began walking up to where Jet was sitting.  
"She's my new partner. After you died, I came upon her one night on some docks on earth. She needed a place to stay so I took her on and she's helped me get several bounties in the past two weeks she's been here." Jet said still angry.  
"Great, I'm gone for a month and you find another partner? What's that all about?" Spike asked. Alex couldn't help but walk over and try and peek at the screen to see this Spike person. She snuck up behind Jet's chair and peeked over his shoulder.  
"Hey, if you would've came back, I wouldn't have worried about finding another partner!" he yelled. Alex looked into the screen and saw almost the same person as seen in the picture Pidge gave her a few weeks earlier.  
"Is that her?" the man asked with a smile.   
"Huh?" Jet asked as he looked over his shoulder and saw her. "Yea! She's an amazing cook, a great shot, and actually does work around the ship. She's better than having you freeloaders around to just eat and run." He scolded.  
"Hi there, Alex is it? I'm Spike, Jet's old partner." Spike said with a wink. Seeing him and him actually speaking her name surprised Alex  
"Uh, hi. You met a friend of mine a few weeks ago. That's how I sorta know your face." She said with a weak smile.  
"Oh really? Who?" He asked.  
"Pidge Bordeaux. You two met at the Equatorial Circuit a few weeks ago." She said.  
"O yea, the guy with the black and yellow Stinger that blew almost 20 trans' since January. Yea, I asked him about making my ship faster." He said smiling and scratching his head. "Which reminds me, Jet, the Swordfish II is still there, is it not?"  
"Yea, it's here." he said.  
"Okay, that's all I needed to know. Bye for now." He said getting ready to hang up.   
"Spike!" Jet yelled.  
"Bye Alex, see you soon!" she said as he blew a kiss and hung up. Alex began to blush.  
"So that was Spike?" she asked Jet. He nodded.  
"Yep, that was the crazy son of a bitch alright." He said as he pulled a box of cigarettes from his pocket and a lighter. "That was Spike." 


	11. Bicker and Liquor

"Oh yea, Ed said to head for earth." Alex said as she snapped out of her little trance. She was still looking at the blank computer screen in hopes that Spike may reappear.  
"Did she say anything else?" he asked as he began to type furiously at the control panel. Alex shook her head.  
"Nope. She said to head for earth and that was it." she said as she started on her way back to the living area where Ed was fiddling with the computer.   
"Great. We'll touch down just in time to start grilling." He said as he set the course into the computer and reclined in the chair.  
"Whatever. I'm going to go back and hang out with Ed." She said as she began walking away. she was about half way down the corridor when she realized someone was behind her. She turned to see Jet walking about 10 feet back with his hands buried deep in his pockets. She kept walking anyway and emerged into the living area to see Ed, with her goggles still on, dancing with Ein.   
"Spike called, Jet!" Ed said as she flung Ein over her shoulder and pulled her goggles up onto her forehead.   
"Yea, I know. I was talking to him." He grumbled.  
"If that's what you want to call it. It was more like screaming." Alex said.   
"Yea, yea, yea…" he said as he went to the refrigerator. He pulled out a bottle of water and opened it. He took a sip and walked back towards her, on his way back to the piloting area.  
"Why are you holding such a grudge against him?" Alex asked as they came face to face.  
"I'm not holding a grudge. What makes you think that?" he asked. Alex just looked at him.  
"You say you aren't but you were just yelling and screaming at him? Come on Jet, it's a little obvious." She said. Jet just pushed through her, forcing her to the ground, and walked through the corridor.   
"Don't get involved in our business. It's nothing for someone like you to worry about." He said as he kept walking. Alex watched as he reached the end of the hall and the door shut behind him. She just sat there on the floor wondering what had just happened.   
"Hmm, Ed thinks Jet is mad. Is Alex okay?" Ed asked as she hopped over like a frog and sat beside her.  
"Yea, I'm fine. Ed doesn't need to worry about Alex." She said as she rubbed her shoulder. Jet had pushed her really hard. What was going on between him and Spike that had gotten him so mad?   
"Okay, well, ed has found more information on Zeke, would Alex like to view it?" Ed asked as she helped pull Alex to her feet.  
"Sure, why not." Alex said as she walked over to the computer. Ed had found so much about him; it was hard to not find him. After looking over all the stuff Ed had found, Alex went over to the couch and decided to take a nap. She shut her eyes and rolled over. In a few moments, she had lost consciousness and was sleeping like a baby. She didn't know how long she was out, but when she had finally come to the ship had been turned off and she could hear the sound of water lapping at the side of the ship.   
"'Bout time you're awake, I was starting to contemplate cooking the chops myself." She heard Jet say. She turned her head to see Jet sitting in the chair.  
"Where's Ed?" Alex asked with a slight yawn.   
"Gone visiting. I told her to be back here by noon tomorrow or we'd go look for the bounty without her." He said.  
"Oh." She said.  
"Alex, I'm sorry about earlier. I was just irritated at Spike is all. I didn't mean to push you down." He said apologetically.  
"It's alright Jet, I understand. You and he probably are at odds and you're right for me to not get involved in what was going on between the two of you." She said. "After all, he did leave to take down both the Vicious who had stolen his Julia and the Vicious who was heading the Red Dragon." She said. Jet looked at her.  
"You listened to the story I told Blade?" he asked. Alex smiled.  
"Meh, that door. When I slammed it, it opened back up just a hair and I was able to hear the whole thing as I sat on my bed in tears." She said as she yawned again.   
"Heh, that door." Jet said with a smile. Alex sat up and then stood.  
"Well, I suppose that means we should grill?" she asked. Jet nodded.  
"I'll get a knife and the piping bag. He said as she followed him to the kitchen area. Alex pulled the pork chops and stuffing from the fridge and began prepping them. As soon as Jet handed her the knife, she quickly sliced pockets into them and put them back onto the platter. Jet filled the piping bag with stuffing and gave it to Alex. She filled each chop with the mixture and put them onto a different platter.   
"Where's the grill?" she asked as she grabbed the little egg timer off the stove.  
"I set it up just inside the door. I'll go and take it out onto the docks now and fire it up." he said as he began walking down the hall. She followed behind with the pork and timer and a small bowl of oil and a brand new paintbrush. She watched as Jet lugged the big and bulky grill out of the ship and set it onto the dock. With the turn of a few knobs and the click of the igniter, the grill was on and heating up quick.   
"Well, I should be able to put them on in a few minutes after the grill gets good and hot." Alex said as she used the brush to wipe the chops down with the oil. The grill got hot enough and the pork went on. After about 20 minutes, they were done and the grill was turned off. There was a lovely view from the edge of the dock they were on, so they decided to make diner out to be a picnic. Jet retrieved all the things they'd need and brought them out. They sat out on the dock, eating their stuffed pork chops and potato chips in the glow of the moonlight and the streetlamp far behind them.   
"Jet, do you like having me around?" Alex asked out of the blue.  
"Of course! You're great company and a great partner. Why are you asking?" he asked.  
"I was just wondering because we bicker a lot, you know?" she said.  
"Alex, even the best of friends bicker. You're great to have around and I hope you'll stay. After all, on this beat up old ship, nothing can tear us apart as friends and comrades." He said with a smile and the raising of his beer. Alex looked over, smiled, and raised her wine cooler to him.  
"To an everlasting friendship." She smiled.  
"I'll drink to that." He said as the two bottles clinked together for a brief moment and then were drawn back and drank. It was one of the most relaxing nights aboard the Bebop, and probably the last one they'd have for a long time. 


	12. Breakfast at the Shining Star

After they finished their drinks, Jet and Alex carried in their stuff. The grill came in and so did the lawn chairs they were sitting on and the table that was between them. Alex washed the dishes up while Jet put everything away. When everything was put away, they went off to sleep. If hey were to get up and out early to go for a 20 million woolong reward. This bounty was going to be a difficult one and both Alex and Jet knew that as they left the ship together the next morning.  
"Alex, if we're going to be going after a womanizer, I think it'd be a good idea to have some bait." Jet said to her as they ate breakfast.  
"And your point would be?" She asked as she continued to eat her cornflakes.  
"Well, maybe you should dress…a bit provocatively to get him to notice you?" Jet said slowly and rather shyly.  
"Basically, you want me to show some skin, right?" she asked him bluntly. He nodded, fearing that she'd explode into another wild rant. "Fine, no problem." she said as she got up and put her bowl in the sink.   
"You aren't objecting to it?" he asked a bit confused. She stopped and looked at him on her way to the bathroom to shower.  
"Why not? I understand the situation and I know you wouldn't let me get hurt. There's no problem with me scantily dressed for this occasion." She said as she walked off to shower. Jet was left at the table totally dumbfounded. Earlier she had totally objected to wearing revealing clothes but now she had no problem with it.   
"These women, I'll never be able to figure 'em out." He said as he gathered his clothes for the day for he also had to look inconspicuous. He had already worked out a plan; they'd follow their bounty head around by day, careful enough to not let him know they were watching him. That night, they'd go into a bar he's known to hang out at fake a break-up as fiancées and Alex would fake a breakdown in order to get him to confront her. She'd go with him out to the alley behind the bar and then they'd bust him. Jet was proud of himself for figuring this all out by himself. He heard Alex turn off the water and open the door. He looked out into the living area to see her walking through clad only in a towel.  
"So how not-dressed do you want me?" she asked somewhat comically.   
"Well, the plan is we follow him by day and at night we stage a big breakup and that will trigger him to come to you. He sees you in distress and comes to comfort you. You guys go out the back and we bust him in the back alley. Any ideas?" he asked. Alex seemed to ponder as she stood there in her towel still dripping.  
"Meh, I'll put something together. You just worry about yourself." She said as she went into her room and shut the door. Jet shrugged his shoulders and went to shower. He finished and dressed before meeting Alex back out in the living area. She was wearing dark blue jeans with a silver chain around her waist. He could see the straps of a black thong peeking out from underneath and hugging her hips just above the waistline of the jeans. Her tanned and toned stomach was revealed and she wore a black belly top that hugged her upper body. The neckline was low and the sleeves were short. Her hair was down and wavy and her makeup was done to give her the 'smoky eyes' look with a purple or mauve lipstick color that sort of just tinted the lips from the soft pink they were earlier. On her feet were a pair of black, pointed-toe, leather cowboy boots and she was pulling on Spike's black leather trench coat. Jet smiled at how much alike they had dressed. He also wore the blue jeans and a black tank top. On his right wrist, he wore a shiny silver watch, he had a black belt around his waist, and he put on his black sunglasses. Alex took one look at him and began to smile.  
"Jet, we're dressing alike. I'm starting to get scared." She said with a giggle as they headed for the door. They walked past the bathroom and Alex glimpsed in at the mirror. She stopped and reached into her pocket only to pull out her sunglasses and put them on. "Damn, we make bounty hunting look good." Se said as they walked out of the ship arm in arm as if dating. They'd put on one hell of a show today.   
"So, in the morning for breakfast, he's rumored to be around a place called the Shining Star Diner between seven and nine. Shall we go have a cup of coffee dear?" Jet asked.  
"Why I'd love to!" She said as they continued to walk. They acted the part of the fiancées as they entered the diner. There was a tiny table for two in a corner where you could watch the entire restaurant. That's where they sat in hopes to see their man Zeke Diboa walk in. Their coffee and hot chocolate came and they sat and sipped for a little while. After about 45 minutes or so, the door opened and the blond haired bounty walked in.  
"There he is. Don't turn around and look, he looks like he's going to walk past." Jet said as he reached his left hand out and took hers. Alex heard the click of heels come closer and as they drew within 15 feet, she turned to catch a glimpse of their target. He was rather tall, the long blonde hair was down and his eyes shone bright blue. He was wearing a pair of khakis and a white button-down shirt with a black coat over it. Alex and he managed to make eye contact and as they did, he smiled warmly. There was something about him that just didn't sit right with Alex; like she had seen him before. As he walked by, he kept his eye on her until he sat down.   
"Great, we made eye contact and he's interested. This'll be good for later." She said as she picked up her cup of hot chocolate and sipped it carefully. She and Jet acted as if happy together as a couple to give him the idea that she wasn't on the market, which would fuel his desires even more because of the want for something that wasn't his. At one point, Alex glanced over and saw him wink at her. She knew that the plan was working and she couldn't wait for the action later on tonight. However, she felt as if something was going to happen; something not good and something that could leave her dead.  
"Alex, are you alright?" Jet asked noticing that something was wrong.  
"Yea, I'm alright. We'd better get going. Any more and he might come over and talk." She said taking one last glance at their beautiful 20 million woolong bounty.   
"Good idea, he seems like the sleazy type. That has to be him alright." Jet said as he stood and pulled on his coat and Alex stood and pulled on hers. She hugged him and leaned in for a kiss. "What do you think you're doing?!" he asked her somewhat alarmed.  
"Jet, we're an engaged couple, we need a kiss to seal the deal. That'll definitely let him know I'm taken! Trust me, I know how his type of mind works." She said as she puckered up and kissed him on the lips. Jet grumbled as he wrapped his arm around her waist and walked to the counter to pay the bill. The counter girl took a look at Alex.  
"My, aren't you a cute one? Work for a model agency do you?" she asked. Alex chuckled lightly.  
"Me? No, I'm a musician and a singer." She said. The girl glanced over in the direction of Zeke for a quick moment and then back at Alex.   
"And I'm her manager and fiancée." Jet chimed in. all three smiled.  
"Congratulations! Good luck with you two!" She said as she handed Jet his change.   
"Thank you, have a good day." Jet said as he pocketed his change and walked out the door, practically dragging Alex with him. They walked around the side of the restaurant and Jet pulled out a palm-sized screen and turned it on.  
"What did you do?" Alex asked as she looked at the screen.  
"Mini camera, we can see and hear what he says." He said as he turned the volume up. The picture showed Zeke still sitting at his table and then the counter girl walking up to him.  
"Mr. Deboa, that young girl you were curious about? She's a musician and singer with a fiancée who also happens to be her manager. From what I could tell, she's roughly 20 to 25 years old." She said. She practically repeated their conversation to him!  
"Well, I think I should like to find her and…talk with her." He said as his eyes narrowed. Jet and Alex looked up at each other and smiled before giving each other hi-fives.   
"HE'S INTERESTED!!!" they both exclaimed happily. 


	13. Memories to be Forgotten

Jet shut off his pocket TV and put it back in his pocket.   
"Okay, back to the ship until later tonight." He said as he started walking off. Alex followed at his side and put on her sunglasses.   
"Okay, we know I'm good, right?" she asked happily and assuringly. She smiled beautifully in the morning sun. Jet smiled too.   
"Yes, you're good. Now we have to practice for tonight, so we know what exactly to do later on. It'd be a little awkward if you kept looking around for him to walk into the bar, so I'll think of something to say that gives you the cue he's in the bar." He said as they headed for the docks once again. They got back and relaxed for the rest of the night. When it was about 7:00 or so, they got ready yet again. Alex wore the same thing, as did Jet and they were out the door and on their way to the bar at 7:15.   
"Okay, so what's the phrase to cue me?" Alex asked as the bar came into their sight.  
"I'll start asking you about what songs you want to do for the next album. That's pretty good, don't you think?" he asked. Alex though.  
"Yea, it'll work." She said.  
"And about this place, order whatever you want. We have plenty of money so don't worry about price, okay?" he said as they drew closer.   
"Okay. Just remember you said that." She said as he opened the door for her. As her eyes adjusted to the darkened area, she saw that there were two bars, on either side of a huge dance floor. The place wasn't packed, but it wasn't empty either. The music was at a good volume for conversation but louder on the dance floor. Jet and Alex walked in and sat at the bar closer to the door, Jet sitting so he could see the door as people gradually came in.   
"What'll it be?" the bartender asked. He was scruffy, but cute.  
"I'll have a whisky sour." Jet said as he looked at Alex.  
"A twisted tea, please." She said with a smile. The bartender nodded and walked off.  
"I told you order what you want, we can handle the expense!" he said.  
"And I wanted a twisted tea! Calm down Jet, you're freaking out." She said trying to calm him down. The drinks came and they sat a while just talking. It was getting late and still no Zeke. They didn't want to leave, but the place was starting to fill and get busy. With a sigh, Jet went to stand when his eyes fixed onto something.  
"So, uh, what kind of music…err, songs do you want for the next album?" he stuttered. Alex casually picked up her drink and smiled.  
"I don't know. Maybe some kind of acoustic rock." She said. She could feel her knees shaking as she filled with anxiousness.  
"He's coming this way, cut to the chase." He said trying to smile. Alex got the idea. She worked up some quick tears and stood quickly with drink in hand.  
"Damn you!" she screamed. Anyone in earshot turned to listen, including their bounty head.  
"Hon, I'm sorry!" he said trying to be sincere. It looked so real.  
"No, this was the last straw!" she said as she spilled the drink on him and her fake tears started to flow. "The marriage is off and I never want to see you again!" She yelled. He came close and hugged her.  
"I'll be out back in 5 minutes." He whispered into her ear.  
"Gotcha." She whispered back before pushing him off. "No! No more! I hate you!" she screamed with tears pouring down her cheeks. He tossed a bill onto the bar to pay for the drinks and then walked out of the bar. Alex sat back down and wiped her tears away, still acting upset. A few moments later, she felt a hand on her back. She pretended to think it was Jet and whipped around. "Jet!" she said angrily.  
"No, I'm not your guy friend." Said Zeke with a smile as he sat beside her in Jet's seat. The plan was working perfectly.  
"Oh, I'm sorry mister…" she said to set him up.  
"Zeke, Zeke Diboa. I noticed you this morning in the diner with that guy." He said still rubbing her back and trying to calm her down.  
"That was you? I thought you looked familiar." She said as she used a napkin to dry her eyes.  
"Yea, what were you doing with him anyway? Is he your big brother or something?" he asked.  
"He was my fiancée. Until he told me about him and some younger girl named Tyler just a few minutes ago." She said with a sniffle.  
"You're fiancée? He's got to be over 40! How old are you?" he asked.  
"I just turned 23. Jet is much older, I know, but we had so much in common and now I don't know how to go back home." She said becoming upset again.  
"Shhh…it's alright. You could spend the night with me. if you think it'll give your friend time to cool off." He suggested with a cool smile. Alex tried to smile and nodded.  
"Okay, maybe that'll help." She said as she stood. She walked toward the coatroom and got her coat when she turned to look at Zeke, he had grabbed his hair and held it as if he was going to wear it in a ponytail. It was then it hit Alex…was he the guy? The guy she wanted to forget so badly? He looked at her and released his hair with a smile. Alex almost forgot what she was doing.  
"Come on, let's go." He said as he escorted her towards the front door. Alex stopped.  
"Wait, he'll be out front waiting for me. Is there a back way out of here to the alley around back?" she asked. Zeke looked around.  
"Yea, it's back this way." He said as he led her through a huge crowd. Alex looked at him from the side and from the back and couldn't help but think about her sickening past experiences. He led her to a fire exit and stood by the door.  
"Is this it?" she asked. He nodded.  
"Yep, shall we go?" he asked as he put his hand on the fire bar. He pushed and the door opened, letting them both into the back alley. The moonlight shone down and lit the area dimly. "Well, now that I have you to myself…" He said with a smile as the door shut.  
"What?" Alex asked trying to play naïve. He grabbed her arms and forced her up against the wall of the building. Holding her hands above her with one hand, he cupped his other over her mouth to silence her screaming.  
"Here's a little advice honey, never leave a shady bar with a shady character." He said with a smile as he licked the side of her face. Alex had heard that before from the man she wanted to forget only years before. She thought he was put away and she'd never see him again! No, this couldn't be him…this couldn't be the guy who raped her 4 years ago! 


	14. A Foiled Attempt and Painful Memories

She tried to scream but his hand was over her mouth and just so that she couldn't scream, or bite down for him to release her. She tried to scream anyway as he continued to lick her face. Just then, he removed his hand from her mouth and reached into his pocket, which gave her a chance to scream.  
"JET! HELP!" She screamed as loud as she could before she was gagged.  
"There's no one around to hear you. They're all inside the bar and can't hear you over the music. You're all mine honey." Zeke said as he reached into another pocket and pulled out a piece of rope. He forced her arms behind her body and bound them together leaving a small loophole sticking out. Why was this happening? It wasn't supposed to end like this! Where was Jet? He was supposed to be back here to help bust Zeke! Alex was scared; she began to recall the horrific night only four years earlier. It was a warm night and she was playing her guitar in the park for money. He walked up to her and offered her a place for the night; he had his hair tied back and was wearing a pair of shorts and a wife-beater. She remembered how kind he was at first and then how cruel and brutal later that evening when he tied her up and had his way with her. She remembered the pain and the embarrassment she felt while he was overpowering her and then how he dumped her in an alley the next morning. Alex began to cry as he pulled her to a downspout of the building and hooked the loop over a jagged piece of the metal. He took a step back and looked at her. The tears were for real this time, as she knew what was coming next. "There's something familiar about you. I can't put my finger on it, but I feel like I know you." He said as he rocked back on his heels and thought, leaning against the side of a neighboring building.   
"Mmph fmm affm." She tried to tell him, but the gag was in the way. He walked up to her and placed a hand on her cheek and tugged the gag away with the other.  
"What now, my pretty?" he asked as she doubled over in tears.  
"Please let me go. Not again, please." She said as she cried quietly.  
"Again? What are you talking about?" he asked her as he pulled her to face him. It was like someone flipped a switch in his head just then. "You! You're that homeless girl with the guitar! That was so long ago, back when I had just started doing this. Damn, when I had you the first time you were nothin' but a scrawny, dirty, little bitch who was homeless and singing for money with that old beat up guitar," he began as he brushed her hair out of her face for her, "and now you look so much better, just lost your fiancée to a younger girl, and probably homeless again. Well doesn't history repeat itself in such a funny way?" he chuckled.  
"Please don't. I know why you do it, just please just let me go. It shouldn't even happen to a girl once, but to happen twice and by the same person is just flat out wrong." Alex begged through her tears. She didn't want to look at him, but if she did, maybe it would sway him to let her go. He only smiled and removed his coat.  
"I don't think so. You were good the first time around, let's see how much you've improved." He said as he tugged the gag back down over her mouth and unbuttoned her jeans. Alex shut her eyes tight and prayed to god she wouldn't be hurt. Just then, she heard a gun cock.  
"Zeke Diboa, you'd better button my partner's jeans back up, untie her, and put your hands where I can see them before I take you out!" a familiar voice said. Alex's eyes burst open to see Jet standing behind Zeke with a pistol lodged against the back of his head, right where the spine entered the skull. Zeke knew he was done. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a knife and cut Alex's hands free. She tugged the gag off and buttoned her jeans. Jet grabbed Zeke and pulled him away from her.  
"Where the hell were you Jet?" she asked him as she wiped her tears away and pulled the concealed gun from within her coat and held it up to Zeke's face. Jet placed his gun in its holster and pulled out a pair of handcuffs.   
"I had to find more ammo. I ran out and didn't have anymore for tonight." He said as he cuffed the bounty head. "You alright?"  
"I'll be fine, let's just cash him in." she said as jet began to force him to walk to the opening at the end of the alley.  
"You know girl," Zeke began, "when I had you a few years ago, you were pretty damned good. I wish I could be your husband or boyfriend." Alex looked at him and pointed her gun right between his eyes.  
"I have no husband or boyfriend because of what you did to me you monster. I hope you die a miserable death and rot a thousand times over in the burning depths of hell." She said shedding a final tear. Jet only walked Zeke to a police car that was rapidly approaching with the lights flashing the sirens howling. After they arrested Zeke and paid Jet and Alex for the capture, the two began walking back to the ship without a word from Alex, who was still trying to gather her thoughts. When they got back, they found that no one had called and there was a package for Faye waiting by the door.  
"Well, we're home." Jet said with a sigh. Alex said nothing. She didn't look up, didn't acknowledge, didn't blink. The two of them stepped inside and Alex headed straight for her room. She closed the door behind her and soon after, Jet heard her crying. Maybe it was because she was almost raped tonight. It was all his fault; he shouldn't have left to look for ammo when they were dealing with someone like Zeke. He waited until Alex slowed her crying and he heard her strumming on her guitar before he went and knocked on her door. The guitar stopped. He waited for her to say he could come in, but she didn't. After a pause, the guitar started again so jet just cracked the door and peeked in. Alex was in her pajamas, which consisted of a pair of black hakama pants and a white tank top, and sitting on her bed strumming the guitar with tears silently streaming down her cheeks.  
"Hi Jet." She said quietly. Jet just barely heard her speak. He opened the door and walked into her room, pulling the door almost totally shut behind him.  
"Alex, about tonight, I'm sorry I left. If I didn't you would've…" he began but she cut him off.  
"Jet, it wasn't your fault." She said as she stopped playing and put her guitar down. She scooted to the top of her bed and motioned for Jet to sit. She wiped her eyes as he sat down and looked at her. "Remember on the first night I moved in, we talked about how I used to work as a food critic and then how that supposedly was my worst time?"  
"Yea, why?" he asked. He was becoming concerned. She wiped her tears again.   
"Remember how I said it wasn't my worst time and I wouldn't tell you what really was my worst time?" she asked.  
"Alex, what are you getting at?" he asked.  
"Jet, four years ago, Zeke raped me." she said sort of spitting it out like a piece of overly sour candy. 


	15. Heeeeere's Johnny!

Jet sat there without emotion, he didn't know what to say to her.  
"Why are you telling me this, Alex? You didn't have to." He said. She shook her head.  
"No, I didn't want you to blame yourself for what happened back in the alley. If I hadn't acted so naïve, it wouldn't have happened this time. The first time it happened I realized what happened too late to help myself. Before I knew it, he had me subdued and he was…" she said as she trailed off. Jet bowed his head in sympathy.  
"Yea, but tonight. If I hadn't left to find ammunition, I would've been there to bust him before he had you tied up and gagged. Therefore I can say it was entirely my fault it happened almost a second time." he said practically arguing with her.  
"Jet, if you want to take the blame so bad, go right ahead. It won't help the situation." Alex said to him. He looked up at her. She was sitting, facing away from him, in a fetal position on her bed with her knees pulled up to her chin and her arms wrapped around her folded legs. Jet inched his way next to her and then wrapped his arms around her.  
"Alex, he's locked up and he'll be locked up for a very long time. It's over. He can't hurt you anymore and even if when he did get out, he came after you, he'd have to deal with me first." Alex looked to him. She cracked a smile and leaned her head back on his shoulder.  
"You're too good to me Jet. It's like I never lived before I came here. Now I have incoming money and friends; it just so great to be here doing this. It's like a dream or something." She said with a sigh. She moved around to face him and he stood. She stretched her legs out and he took a seat in an armchair next to the foot of the bed.  
"Ah, it's all for a good cause I suppose." He said as he sat down and began to relax. She smiled and picked up her guitar again. She began to strum the strings again as Jet pulled his silver harmonica out of his pocket. She smiled and started playing the one song they both enjoyed together. it was the song she wrote the first night she came to the Bebop, 'Don't Bother None'.   
"Readin' my paper in Ray's café, the old guy next to me's as loud as day;" she sang as Jet played quietly in the background under the sound of both her voice and guitar. "Grumble and grumble while eatin' his pie, he dropped his wallet and now it's mine uh huh." She continued. They played the song all the way through and at the end. They both smiled and then stopped. By this time, it was almost half past eleven.  
"That was great Alex, we should record that." He said as he wiped the harmonica off and pocketed it again.   
"Yea, I think I'd like some more instruments on it though. Definitely some drums, a piano, and who knows what else." She said as she put the guitar in its case and shoved it under the bed. Just then, there was a bang from outside. It was inside the ship, but not too far from Alex's room. The two looked at each other and pulled their guns.  
"Don't make any noise." Jet said as he cocked his pistol. Alex nodded and did the same. He slowly got up out of the chair and went towards the door. Alex rose to her knees to get a good stance before she fired her gun as Jet flicked off her bedroom light. Heavy footsteps could be heard echoing through the door that was cracked open.  
"Didn't you lock the door when you came in?" Alex whispered.  
"Shut up and yes I did!" he scolded under his breath. With his back against the wall and his gun in his left hand, he reached for the door with his right. The footsteps seemingly thundered out in the living area and stopped just outside Alex's door. By this time, both Jet and Alex were sweating and nervous as to what was going to happen next. The suspense was killing them both, more Alex than Jet. She was still uneasy from earlier at the bar and was ready to just pull the trigger over and over and shoot through the door and whatever or whoever was behind it. Her hand was shaking by now and Jet turned to look at her.   
"Calm down, you'll be fine." He whispered as quietly as he could. Sweat dripped down his forehead as his right hand latched onto the doorknob and was ready to pull it open. With a nervous gulp, he pulled the door open as fast as he could and swung around to point his gun directly between the eyes of the person standing there. In return, he also was greeted with a gun barrel square between his eyes. Alex's hand stopped shaking and held her gun firm, pointed directly at the figure holding the gun to Jet's head. It was too dark to tell, but no one had fired a shot or made any physical contact with one another. The two stood there with guns pointed and ready to fire for at least a minute or so before she heard a stomach growling. She realized it was hers and hoped it didn't distract the two that seemed to be facing off.  
"Who the hell are you and what are you doing on my god damn ship?" Jet asked angrily. The other figure dropped his gun from Jet's forehead and holstered it. Alex saw and arm reach around the side of the doorframe and flick on her light.   
"Jet, you are too overprotective of this piece of junk." A somewhat recognizable voice said with a slight chuckle. The light came on and Alex could see Jet pointing his gun straight between the eyes of a tall and somewhat thin man, a few years older than her. He was wearing a blue suit and had brown hair with a slight greenish tint to it. Jet's eyes went wide and he threw his gun to the floor. It bounced twice before stopping with a clang each time it hit the metal floor.  
"GOD DAMN YOU SPIKE!!!" Jet screamed. He was angry and Alex could tell.   
"Yea, nice to see you too." He said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a box of cigarettes and lit one up.  
"Don't do that again. I was ready to pull the trigger!" he said as he wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. "Gimmie a cigarette." 


	16. Will The Boy Ever Learn?

Alex still sat there with her gun pointed, but began to lower it to her bed.  
"So, you must be Alex, am I right?" Spike asked her. She slowly nodded and let her hands, still grasping the gun tightly, rest on the bed. "Hey! I was wondering where that one got off to." Spike said as he walked over to the bed and took the gun from her.  
"I figured it was one of your best and would be good for a beginner. So I taught her how to use it. She's quite the sharp shooter if you ask me." Jet said as he took a few puffs of his cigarette.  
"Are you now?" Spike asked her. She nodded again. "Well, I guess maybe it's because she's always quiet."   
"She's had a rough night Spike, we went after Diboa tonight and had a little incident. It wouldn't surprise me if she didn't talk for a little while." Jet said.  
"You nabbed Diboa?! God damn it Jet, I told you I was after him!" Spike yelled but then chuckled. "I thought I saw you at that bar earlier."  
"Yea, we were at the Shining Star this morning when he was trying to pick up Alex, but we went under the guise of being engaged which seemed to work." He explained.  
"Well damn, with a body like that, who wouldn't want to pick her up?" spike said as he turned to Alex and tried to kiss her cheek. She was still uneasy about earlier and didn't want anyone near her like that, especially if she didn't know them. Instead of Spike kissing her, he received a sharp blow across his face. He was knocked backwards and to the floor when she stood up angrily. 'What an asshole' she thought. Spike looked up at her, rubbing his cheek. Jet only laughed.  
"Told you she was a good partner! Not only that, she's a good cook too!" Jet chuckled as Alex walked out of the room, leaving Spike still on the floor and Jet still chuckling.  
"Jerk." She muttered as she exited. Spike watched her leave.  
"A feisty one Jet, think you can handle her?" Spike asked with a grin. Jet slowly stopped laughing.  
"Eh? Oh, we aren't like that. Strictly business between the two of us." he said as he inhaled the cigarette smoke again.  
"Uh huh. Then tell me, why you are in her room at 11:30 at night?" Spike asked as he stood up again. Jet shot him a dirty look.  
"She's a musician. She plays guitar and she was playing, so I came in here to listen. Maybe she'll play tomorrow, you'll see how good she is and how beautiful it sounds." He said as he put his cigarette out.  
"Right, I'll believe you." He said as he walked towards the door. Jet opened it and saw Alex lying on the couch.  
"Alex, you still up?" Jet asked as he and Spike came out of her room. She picked her head up off of the bright yellow cushions and looked at Jet. "Go to bed. You need to sleep." He said as both he and Spike walked towards the kitchen table. She blinked at him and then got up. Drowsily, she staggered to her room.  
"Good night, Jet." She said with a yawn. He smiled at her.  
"Good night Alex." He said. Spike looked at her.  
"Yea, good night." He said with a wink. Alex rolled her eyes at him and he was sure he heard her growl at him. She pulled the door shut behind her and wasn't heard from anymore that night.  
"Well, she likes you." Jet chuckled as he grabbed his box of cigarettes from the counter and lit one up. Spike, as usual, had already begun rummaging through the refrigerator.  
"What the hell are these?" He asked as he pulled out a plate wrapped in tin foil. Jet glanced over.  
"Oh, those are the grilled pork chops she made last night. Heat them up and eat them, they're amazing." He said. Spike lifted the foil off and looked at them. The charred grill markings made him drool and grow even hungrier.  
"So how did you find this girl again?" he asked as he tossed the dish into the microwave and turned it on.  
"I was here about a month or so ago and I was food shopping. I was in the marketplace and heard this sound, but as soon as I heard it, it stopped. When I had finished shopping, I was walking back to the ship when I heard it again. I walked towards it and it led me back to the docks where the ship was. She was playing her guitar by the light of the moon. I offered her a chance to live on the ship with me and she took it. That's how she came to live on the Bebop, basically." He explained. Spike nodded.   
"And what's this about a mishap while dealing with Diboa tonight?" he asked. Jet sighed.  
"She almost became a victim. I went looking for more bullets for my gun and when I came back, he had her tied up and was starting to undress her. I got there before he was able to finish unzipping her jeans." He explained. Spike nodded again.  
"Uh huh…that was really smart, leaving her alone with a serial rapist." Spike pointed out. Jet felt horrible by now.  
"Thanks Spike, make me feel better." He sighed as the microwave beeped. Spike took out the pork chops and grabbed a fork and knife before sitting down across from Jet.  
"So tell me Jet, what is keeping you from dating her? I mean look at her, she has a great body and she's young, why not give her a chance to become Mrs. Jet Black?"  
"Spike, you don't get it. First off, she's young enough to be my daughter. And second, she isn't the type of girl to easily trust a man with her heart. She's had a really rough past you know. Her parents were killed when she was 8 and she was in and orphanage until she turned 16 and ran away. She's 23 and was homeless for several years. She was very reluctant to come aboard the ship at first but after a little conversation, she realized I wasn't such a bad person and came on. Spike, she's not just some Barbie you can mess around with and then leave alone, she's been through too much to just be dropped like a bad habit." Jet lectured. Spike was busy eating.  
"She can stay."  
"What?"  
"She can stay. Are you deaf?"  
"Of course she can stay, what the hell are you going on about?"  
"She's a good cook, she can stay." 


	17. A Classic Spike Conversation

The next morning, Alex woke up early. She was up before Jet and Spike, which was plenty said. Jet was usually up between 5 and 6. She didn't know when that jerk Spike woke, so it was probably safe to assume he was still asleep too. When she looked at the clock beside her bed, it read 5:03, but she was wide awake. Quietly, she rolled out of bed and went to her door. She opened it up and walked out into the living area. It was dark and silent except for the lights near the bottom to help see where you were going. She went to the cabinet and got a mug and filled it with water. Then she poured in some hot chocolate mix and stuck it in the microwave. She let it warm up and then took it out before it could beep so she wouldn't wake Jet. When she took it out, she stirred it a little and then took a sip. It wasn't scalding hot, or too cold, it was perfect. She took her cup with her and went to go outside. Before she stepped out the door, she grabbed a collapsible lawn chair with her so she could sit out and watch the sun rise if it hadn't risen already. She stepped out on a cool and clear morning, during the twilight before dawn. The sun hadn't risen above the horizon yet, but it looked as if it was about to. She stood looking over the ocean to the horizon that seemed so far away. The clouds were puffy and highlighted and seemed to float off like cotton candy. Alex stood there in all of nature's beauty just watching as a small group of seabirds flew overhead.  
"Kinda makes you relax, huh?" asked a voice from behind her. She almost spilled her hot chocolate when she jumped in surprise. To her surprise, and dismay, Spike was outside with her.  
"God damn it, DON'T DO THAT!" She scolded. He only smiled.  
"Hey, you were relaxed and moved by the sight, right? Well there you…OWWW!!!" He exclaimed as Alex swiftly kicked him in the shins with a tremendous amount of force.  
"You ruined a perfectly good morning, you pig." She said as she stomped back aboard the ship and shut the door behind her. "What a jerk, I don't understand how someone can be so stupid!" She said as she walked back into the living area of the ship and tossed the collapsible chair into a corner. She took her hot chocolate with her into her room and shut the door behind her as she heard the ship's main door open and footsteps echo in the hall. After a few sips of her hot chocolate, she pulled out her guitar and started to strum the strings.  
  
Spike had come inside and had sat down at the kitchen table to examine his shin where Alex had kicked him. It was painful and swelling a little, so he retrieved an ice bag from the freezer and sat with it on the bruising area.  
"Jet must've had his hands full with this one. Damn she's a feisty one." He said as he rubbed the place where her foot met his shin. "Ah well, I suppose I should be nice and apologize to her for last night and this morning." He said as he reached into a drawer and pulled out a roll of tape. He wrapped the frozen bag to his leg and stood up. "Good enough." He commented as he started walking towards Alex's room when he heard the sound of the guitar. He reached the door and knocked.  
"Get lost Spike." Alex said from inside.  
"Sorry, can't do that. I know my way around this area too well." He said.  
"You aren't funny, what do you want?" she asked.  
"Let me in, I want to call a truce." The guitar stopped and the door clicked open a crack. The guitar started again as Spike pushed the door open and stepped inside. He looked to see Alex sitting on her bed strumming the strings gently and producing a warm and friendly tone.   
"What do you want?" she asked as he pulled the door shut behind him.  
"I wanted to say I was sorry. What I did last night and this morning was rude and uncalled for." He said attempting to use big words to make himself sound smart.  
"Uh huh, and how am I supposed to believe you? Most men are all the same, blunt pigs who don't care, what makes you any different?" she asked as she played faster.  
"Well, I guess it'll just take some time before you believe me. We're going to be on this ship for god only knows how long and we might as well be civil. Hell, maybe even friends but that depends on how much you trust me I guess. After all, I was only fooling around last night and I sneak up on everyone like I did to you this morning."  
"How the hell was I supposed to know you were right behind me? I thought I was the only one out there and I felt safe. You were the one sneaking around and scaring me." she said as she stopped her playing abruptly and looked at him angrily.   
"Actually, I was outside exercising when you came out with your chair and cup of hot chocolate. If anyone should be surprised, it should be me." He said matter-of-factly. Alex went back to playing, realizing he had a point.   
"Whatever. Is that all you wanted?" she asked as she struck a melodious chord. He smiled and took a seat in the armchair at the foot of her bed.  
"Well, I wanted to find out more about you. I suppose it would be nice if I knew more about some girl named Alex that my partner picked up one night and just decided to bring her onboard with him." He said with grin. She looked up at him, her hair hanging in her face.  
"What do you want to know?"  
"Just start talking. If I have any questions, I'll ask." He said leaning on his hand. He had propped his elbow on the chair and his somewhat thin forearm extended vertically with his chin cradled by his palm.  
"Well, I lived on earth until my parents were murdered and went to an orphanage when I was 8. I left at 16 and lived on the streets until about a month or so ago." She said just framing everything.  
"Why were your parents killed?" he asked.  
"I don't know. One morning there were a bunch of policemen and an ambulance outside my house and someone was telling me my parents had been killed. The only reason I could think of that anyone would kill them is my dad's hobby." She said.  
"What did your dad do?" he questioned. Alex felt like she was being interrogated.   
"He was a top-fuel racer. He had the fastest craft around; no one could beat him. He won a lot of money and prizes. Always doing promotions and whatnot."  
"Was he famous?"  
"He holds the record for fastest time at the Equatorial Circuit on Mars. No one has beat him for all the years he's been gone."  
"Who was he?"  
"Jim Bondora."  
"You're his daughter?!" Alex nodded. Spike was dumbfounded.   
"Yea, I'm the daughter of the famous Jim Bondora. Ain't I lucky?" she asked still playing her guitar as if nothing was said.  
"Damn, I thought you were killed too?" spike said.  
"No, they only said that to protect me. They figured that if they said I was still alive, I might be kidnapped or something. I didn't get any money but once I decide to settle down, I can get access to the money and use it." she said.  
"Wow. So what else, what was this about last night with Diboa?" he asked. Alex stopped playing, her hand frozen in a position as if ready to strum the strings. She didn't lift her head, she didn't move, she hardly even breathed. She sat silent for a little while.  
"It's something that's tough for me to talk about. I didn't even tell Jet until last night when I was really troubled by it. maybe some day in the future when I trust you more."  
"What, was last night really that bad?" he asked. She looked at him. She thought he was asking about before.  
"Oh, last night? Well, last night was pretty bad. It was just horrible for me." she said as she began playing, but very slowly.   
"If you don't mind me asking, what did he do?" he asked as he shifted around in his seat. Alex swallowed hard, nervous about telling him.  
"Well, he picked me up in the bar after Jet and I faked a breakup and said I could spend the night with him so that I wouldn't have to go home to him. We went out the back where Jet and I planned to take him out, but he wasn't there so Diboa had me pinned to the wall, tied me up, and started to try and rape me, almost making me his 21st victim. But Jet showed up just in time to save me from that." Spike could pick up that she wasn't telling him everything, but he could tell it was hard for her to talk about. 


	18. The Beginning of Something Big

So, how do you like it so far? I finally decided I'll write a lil comentary thingie above each chapter from now on so bear with me for now. OKAY! This chapter was A LOT of fun to write, I know a certain person is going to either shoot me or worship me for it, but hey, I can't help it! Enjoy!  
  
"I was at the bar last night and I was going to talk to Jet, but he was gone before I could catch him, so I wound up watching Diboa from afar and when I saw him leave with that girl out the back, I was going to follow him."  
"That girl was me." Alex said.  
"I realize that now, thanks for restating the obvious." Spike retorted  
"Oh bite me!"  
"Grow up!"  
"Pig!"  
"Bitch!"  
"Asshole!"  
"Slut!"  
"Moron!"  
"Ice queen!"  
"Fuck-tard!" The insults raged on back and forth for about 5 more minutes, until they both just started laughing hysterically.  
"Let's try that again." Spike said with a smile.  
"Let's not and say we did, I'm tired." Alex said with a giggle followed by a yawn.   
"Nap time?" he asked. Alex smiled and nodded.  
"I think so." She said as she moved her guitar to the floor and crawled under her covers. To her surprise, Spike got up and crawled onto the bed with her. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"  
"Taking a nap with you. My bed is completely covered in crap and I can't sleep on that couch." He said as he layed down beside her and squirmed his way under the covers. She felt awkward so she rolled over on her side, facing the door before flicking the lights off. When she was lying like this, he was behind her, until he rolled over too and wrapped his arms around her. She was silent for a few minutes until she couldn't take it anymore.  
"Spike?" She asked. No response. "Spike!"  
"Zzzz…" was all she heard. He was snoring and soundly sleeping, holding her like he'd hold a stuffed animal. She didn't know what to do, should she gut up and leave, or stay and try to sleep? Well, he did have his arms wrapped around her and it was kind of impossible to get up and leave, so she'd have to stay and hopefully sleep. His snoring gradually quieted to the sound of him inhaling and exhaling. His warm arms held her close to him and she felt comforted and the feeling of fear and apprehensiveness gradually subsided and left her to fall asleep in his arms. The clock read 5:37 before she lost consciousness and fell into a deep sleep.   
  
Spike woke up and yawned, he didn't really know where he was. He knew he was in the ship, but he didn't know exactly where. He thought for a moment, pondering this mass of long and straight blond hair in front of him when he remembered he fell asleep with Alex. He picked his head up and looked over at the clock on the bedside table. It read 10:43 and he still had the girl wrapped in his arms. He let his head fall back onto the pillow and then moved his head closer to hers, burying his nose into the golden strands and inhaling deeply. She smelled so good even though she hadn't showered yet. He lifted his head again and peeked over her shoulder at her face, she looked at peace, sleeping pleasantly and with a slight smile. When he saw this, he smiled. It made him think of…no, he couldn't bring himself to recall her and compare her to Alex. It just wasn't possible. There was no way possible he could compare Julia to Alex, he loved Julia too much. He thought about how they first met, how he was an inch from death and she saved him. She sang like an angel to him when he finally came around and that's when they knew they belonged to each other. He looked down at Alex and couldn't help but picture Julia in her place. How he wished she were still alive. He rested his head back on the pillow and pulled her closer to him, adjusting his arms to a more comfortable position around her waist. She began to shift around and realize that she wasn't in her bed alone. She yawned quietly and stretched her legs out when she noticed Spike was conscious behind her.  
"You're still here? I would've figured you left after I passed out." She said with a smile. He buried his nose in her hair again and sniffed.  
"Nah, not my style. If I pass out, there's no way I'm moving until I wake up." he said. Alex became uneasy when he smelled her hair. She looked up at the clock.  
"Oh my god," she said immediately shooting her arms out and grabbing the clock with both hands.   
"What?" he asked with another sniff. She held the clock up for him to see. "And?"  
"It's after 10:30! I don't sleep this late!" she said putting it back down.  
"So? Neither do I. I wake up and I'm outside exercising by five and I don't crash until after midnight, sometimes not sleeping for days." He said. She didn't know what to say. He pulled her close again and she felt weird. She wanted to get up and go have some real breakfast.  
"Spike, what are you doing?" he asked as she tried to turn her head to look at him.  
"I dunno you're so comfortable. I can't get up." he said rubbing his left cheek on her shoulder. She didn't know what to do. She pried his arms off of her and climbed out of bed.  
"I'm going to go find something to eat." She said as she picked a hair clip up off of her bedside table and clipped it up. She went to the door.  
"Alex?" Spike asked before she could open it. She turned to look at him. Her blue eyes looked into his, a few strands of her bangs hanging in her face.  
"Yeah?" she asked him as she placed her hand on the doorknob. She looked at him just lying there, the covers pulled back and revealing his upper body. His brown eyes smiled at her as he propped his head on his left arm.  
"Nothing." He said. She smiled at him and then opened the door and left. 


	19. A Date?

Hey-low again all, hope you are enjoying Deuces Wild so far, I know I'm having a ball writing it! Once again, another absolutely fun chapter to write. Jet's reaction to finding out that Alex and Spike "slept" together and I'll tell ya what, it all turns out good in the end. I can't promise many updates soon, Mid-Terms and whatnot for school...*sigh* bah, it's a tough life as a highschool student...well, enjoy! ^_^  
  
*PLEASE REVIEW!!!!*  
  
Pulling the door shut behind her, she wandered out into the living area, confused as to what just happened. She took a seat on the couch and just sat and thought about it. Why did she fall asleep in Spike's arms? Why was Spike in her bed in the first place? What happened this morning for that to happen? Her head was racing with questions when she realized she wasn't alone in the living area.   
"Alex! 'Bout time you woke up. How'd you sleep?" Jet asked from the kitchen. She looked over at him, emotionless and confused as her bedroom door creaked open and Spike came out, wearing only the scrappy pants he was wearing this morning. Jet caught sight of him coming from her room and his eyes went wide as his cigarette fell from his lips.  
"Morning Jet. What's for breakfast?" he asked as she scratched his head through the mass of greenish-brown locks that crowned him. Jet was totally speechless, what was this? Did they… what… how… why!? He was practically giving himself a headache.  
"Spike, why were you in Alex's room?" Jet tried to ask calmly, but you could hear the tension in his voice. Spike smiled.  
"Sleeping. I went out to exercise and then came back and slept with Alex." He said. He realized how wrong it sounded after he had said it.  
"WHAT?!" Jet roared. Alex swore he shook the entire ship. Jet's eyes went wide in disbelief.  
"Well, we slept in the same bed, but we didn't actually fuck. That would be rude." Spike said cockily with a grin. Jet's eyes narrowed and glared at Spike.  
"It was no big deal Jet," Alex said interrupting Jet and Spikes quarrel, "I came out and had some hot chocolate and then Spike and I talked. After that, I wanted to take a nap and he just decided to lie down with me." Jet looked over at her.  
"Oh, okay Alex." He said smiling at her. He looked back to Spike who was heading for his room.  
"Damn she has you whipped." He said as he entered his room and shut the door behind him.  
"That son of a…" Jet growled.  
"Jet, it was nothing. We just took a nap together was all." Alex chimed in from the couch.  
"Meh, well I guess it's because I don't understand him." He said with a sigh. "You want some breakfast? I got fresh eggs, bacon, sausage, and some french toast." Alex stood and smiled.  
"Sure, thanks Jet." She said as she walked into the kitchen and sat at the table. He got her a plate and fixed her up some scrambled eggs and bacon as she cooked herself some french toast. She sat down and started eating as Spike's door swung open. he was still wearing the pants from earlier this morning, but he held a bunch of rolled up clothes in his arms.  
"I'm taking a shower." He said as he walked away.   
"Don't use all the hot water, I need to shower too!" Jet called after him. Alex swallowed her food.  
"Yea, I need to shower too!" She yelled as he walked around the corner. He popped his head back around with a smile.  
"You know Alex, that shower is big enough for two, it'll save water if we shower together." he said with a smile. Jet looked at him angrily as Alex blushed.  
"Dammit, go get in the fucking shower asshole!" Jet said as he chucked an egg at him. Spike pulled his head back around the corner and the egg hit the wall with a huge splatter.  
"Jet? What's wrong? You're really pissed off today, what's up?" Alex asked as her face returned to it's regular color.  
"It's nothing. Spike is just being an idiot is all. He's playing with fire again." he said with a sigh.  
"This is about him sleeping with me, isn't it?" she asked. Jet looked up at her, shocked.   
"Well, sort of. It's just that he's always screwing around and never takes care of his lady friends. The only one he really cared about was Julia and he can't stand the fact that she's dead." He said rubbing his temples.  
"Who's Julia?" she asked as she swallowed a piece of bacon.   
"She was Spike's one and only true love, or so he thought. Remember I was telling Blade about how Vicious and spike were fighting for the same girl? She was who they were fighting for." He said somewhat telling the story.  
"Really?" Alex asked, listening intently.  
"Yea. Spike can't get over the fact she's dead and gone and swore he would never love another." He said washing the last of the dishes. She sat and ate, pondering what Jet had told her as Spike walked back through the living area dripping wet with a towel wrapped around his waist. His mass of puffy hair was damp and hanging in his face, sticking to his skin. He looked like a totally different person.  
"The shower's open." he said as he walked into his room. As his door shut, Jet turned and took Alex's plate.  
"You want to shower first? I can deal with a cold shower, its no big deal for me." he said as he washed her dish off.  
"You sure?" she asked as she stood. Jet nodded. "Okay, thanks Jet." She said as she went to her room and started rummaging through drawers for clothes that day. She wanted to go out and look around so she figured she should look good. From one drawer she pulled a pair of blue jeans. From another she pulled a red skintight t-shirt. She laid them out on the bed and headed for the shower. Stopping at the closet outside the bathroom, she grabbed a towel and then went to shower. As she washed herself, all the questions she was asking herself when she woke up in Spike's arms, she began to ask herself again. And what was the deal with this Julia girl? She didn't want to pry, so she decided to just let it go. She shut off the water and wrapped herself in the large, soft towel before leaving the steamy bathroom. Quietly she tiptoed though the halls into the living area where Jet glanced up at her as she walked past and Spike's door swung open. He stopped and stared a moment as she walked past and into her room. She shut the door and began towel-drying herself when there was a knock. "WHAT?!" She screeched.  
"Um, can I come in?" Spike's voice asked from outside the door.   
"NO! I'm getting dressed!" she yelled.  
"All the more reason to. Fine, I'll wait outside until you're finished." He said through the thick door. With an irritated sigh, she quickly dressed herself and dried her hair. With a quick spritz of hairspray, she picked up her sneakers and opened the door. Spike was lounging on the couch wearing a blue suit with a cream-colored button down shirt underneath. A tie was loosely wrapped around the collar but the shirt wasn't buttoned all the way up. The top two weren't buttoned and looked good in a sloppy way. He took one look at the blond girl and said only one word.  
"Damn."  
"What?" she asked as he stared at her. Spike was entranced by her beauty. Her blond hair fell like locks of golden silk, the red shirt hugged her body, and the way she stood there just emitted this sense of attitude that he absolutely couldn't ignore. "God damn it, what are you staring at?" she asked again. Spike snapped out of his trance.  
"Nothing. Uh, do you want to go out and walk around for a little while? Jet's planning on leaving by about three." He said still slightly dumbfounded. Alex slowly began to become aware of his interest in her through his tone of voice. She smiled.  
"Sure, let's go." 


	20. Worth Crying For

ArtistaDart-Chan here...this chapter will make you cry!!! I know i did and i wrote it!! But at the end I'll be leaving you begging for the next chapter, I GUARENTEE IT!!! ----(Prolly didn't spell it right but it's late and i got it done!) Please review or the people that know me can call me on the tellyfone and yell and scream at me (Maude, i know you will!!) Enjoy!! Ja Ne! ^_^  
  
Wait, what the hell was she doing? It was only the night before he barged in and gave himself an image of a total asshole. What was she doing saying it was alright for him to go out with her today? She stood there pondering for a moment as Spike headed for the door. When he noticed she wasn't following, he turned to see her just standing there.  
"Alex? You coming?" he asked. This time, it was she who snapped out of the trance and realized what she was doing.  
"Uh yea, sorry about that." She said walking towards him. They walked out side by side but Alex was sure to look at Jet before they left. He was sitting over at the kitchen table reading a magazine but was slyly glaring at Spike. Alex was sure to smile at him before they disappeared down the corridor. He saw her cheerful grin and smiled before returning to his magazine. Alex accompanied Spike down the corridor and to the door.  
"So, where do you want to go? There isn't a whole lot to do on earth." Spike said as the door opened. They stepped out into the warm sunlight and were met with a sea breeze.  
"Well, there is if you know where to go. You can have a lot of fun if you know your way around and you have connections like me." Alex said with a wink and a smile.  
"Oh yea? Like what then?" Spike said.   
"Well, for starters, a cup of coffee and hot chocolate would be nice. Even though it's a warm day, I know a great little place." She said as she cracked her knuckles.  
"What does the cracking of the knuckles mean?" he asked.  
"Just stretching. Care for a little race?" she asked with a grin. Spike looked at her.  
"I highly doubt you could beat me. I'm faster than you'd think." He said with a smile.  
"Oh, and you think I'm slow? Fine, last one to the Java Cup buys. Deal?" Alex said extending her hand to shake his to seal the deal. He looked at her for a second. Her eyes sparkled in the sunlight. They teased and taunted him, telling him to shake her hand. He finally extended his hand to shake hers.  
"Deal." He said as they shook. As soon as Alex released her hand from his, she took off and was in a dead sprint down the street. "HEY! WAIT UP!!!" He called as he began to run after her. She knew exactly where to go, all the back ways and everything, down one alley, through another street, off a balcony, and so many other shortcuts in order to get to the café before Spike. As she came up on it, she saw him come out of the corner of her eye. He was gaining fast, but she was practically there already. They were roughly a block away and Spike was at her heels. He pulled up even with her and looked over.  
"Well, you're fast, I'll give you that." She said still running.  
"And you knew all the shortcuts, no reason we shouldn't tie." He said. They both slowed to a walk. They stopped and caught their breath for a moment before walking towards the tiny café.  
"So, since there is no winner, who's going to pay for the drinks?" Alex asked. Spike smiled.  
"Well, I'm in the generous state of mind right now. I've never been able to find someone to give me a run for my money, no pun intended." He said.  
"Well, I suppose we are in a good mood, aren't we?" she chuckled as he pulled the door open and let her in first. She found a table in a corner and sat down. After their drinks came, they talked about anything and everything. Spike talked about working for the Red Dragon and Alex talked about living on the streets. They had found common ground and were talking openly to each other about things they'd normally never speak of to anyone else.   
"So," Spike said setting his Irish Coffee down after emptying the mug, "Where shall we go now?"  
"Well, considering I don't have a gun, let's go and find me one and then we'll just wander around and go from there." She said. He nodded.  
"Sounds like a plan." He said as he retrieved the bill and paid it. They got up and left they went to the gun shop and then walked around for the rest of the day just talking again, finding each other great company. They were so wrapped up in talking; they lost rack of time and walked around all day until after dark. Close to midnight, they were walking through the park Alex used to play in and they sat on a bench.  
"This was so much fun Spike. We have to do this again sometime." Alex said leaning her head on his shoulder shivering slightly. He removed his suit coat and wrapped it around her shoulders.  
"Here, you don't need to be getting sick," he said also wrapping his arm around her shoulder. She felt at ease when Spike was with her.  
"Thanks Spike." She said moving closer to him. He wrapped his other arm around her and rested his chin on her head.  
"Alex?" he asked after a few moments of silence.  
"Mmm?"  
"Do you believe in love at first sight?" she didn't know what to say. She was silent as he sat awaiting her answer. "Alex?"  
"What?"  
"Do you?" He asked.  
"Why do you ask?" She questioned in return.  
"I asked you first." He said. She hated when people did that.  
"Sort of. It depends really." She said shutting her eyes and still keeping herself tightly wrapped with his coat.  
"Well, say it was someone you never really knew until one day you were out with him until late into the night. At first he was a real asshole but then did a complete 360. He has these feelings for you, but would you have these feelings in return?"   
"Spike. If you're trying to make a point, just come out and say it." she said. She knew what he was going for; she just wanted to hear him say it.  
"Alex…I…" he began. "No, I can't." Alex couldn't believe what she was hearing. She stood up and stood before him.  
"Look, I know what you're trying to say and I know why you don't want to say it. But you can't…" she began before getting cut off.  
"What are you talking about?"  
"Julia, Spike. Jet's told me the stories of how you and Vicious fought over her and she was killed and how you swore never to love again. You can't have that outlook on life, never loving is never living."  
"I did love!"  
"And you still do or else you wouldn't be giving me some bull shit scenario!" she screamed. He looked at her. "If that's how you feel, come out and say it. Not this 'Well, say this happened and then…' No, it doesn't work that way. I've been through too much to be teased like this. Do you really want to know why I was so incredibly distraught last night? Four years ago Diboa raped me. It was horrible and humiliating. Last night he almost got away with doing it a second time and he knew who I was which motivated him even more to do that. Life has treated me so unfairly and I can't put up with it anymore. I don't know why I'm still here, I don't know why I didn't kill myself long ago. Sometimes I can't take it anymore and I feel so horrible, I consider going to the kitchen and dragging that 12-inch chef knife across my wrists and watching myself bleed to death. I just…I…" she said finally breaking down into tears. She collapsed to the ground and just cried with Spike's coat still around her shoulders. Spike wasn't expecting this, this was just too much for him, but she was right. He couldn't just give up love for the rest of his life, just like Alex didn't just give up and kill herself. He got off the bench and fell to his knees in front of her. he wrapped his arms around her and held her close as she cried onto his shoulder.  
"Alex." He said.  
"What?" she sobbed.  
"I think I love you." He said as he ran his fingers through her golden hair. She pulled back from his shoulder and looked at him, face to face.  
"Spike, I think I love you too." She said. He smiled and then she smiled. He leaned in slowly, as did she, and he wiped her tears away with his thumbs.  
"Alex" he whispered as the tips of their noses touched.  
"Spike" She whispered just before they kissed. There they sat in the moonlight on that cold night, on the ground, in the park. After that, they both went back to the ship and slept in the same bed. Jet didn't say a word but just watched as they both went into her room and shut the door. They didn't have sex or mess around; they just changed into comfortable sleeping clothes, climbed into bed, and slept in each other's arms for the second time that day.  
  
The days and weeks rolled by. Alex wrote many songs, Jet learned to play piano and keyboard, Ed became much better at the drums, and Spike was learning guitar from Alex. He had officially moved into Alex's room and they slept together every night. They were the perfect couple and made an amazing team when it came to bounty hunting. They were very much in love, yet they didn't do anything sexually, at all other than their kisses. The whole Bebop crew was happy and healthy; living good lives until that one fateful night that would throw everything off. It was the night Blade McGowan called looking for Alex. 


	21. What's Wrong With Him?

Well? The last chapter was good, ne? ^_^ 'Bout time to see Spike back in the saddle! Yes, this is chapter 21 and I'm glad I was able to write it with all the studying I've been doing ( -_- heh, yea right!) for these damn midterms... arg... well, enjoy this chapter and, YES, HE'S BACK MAUDE!!! :P Ja Ne! ~A.D.C. (AKA: The Dart)  
  
It was about 2 months later and the Bebop crew was living it up. They had almost an infinite amount of money and they were all happy, particularly Spike and Alex. Ed had returned the morning after Spike and Alex declared their love for each other and Faye popped in now and then, just to sneak off with some food and fuel. Occasionally she'd stay for a day or two just to relax, but would disappear again. Jet was becoming quite the chef and Alex was gradually allowed to fly his Hammerhead. Ed was becoming better and better at the drums day by day and received a full drum set for her birthday. Alex found an old CD player from the early 21st century and started collecting CDs to play so she could learn the songs. Spike took some of the money he got from a bounty and went out and bought an old electric guitar and an amplifier. There was a switch that made it sound acoustic like Alex's but then he could adjust it back to sounding like a real electric guitar should. He and Alex would play together and then be joined by Jet and Ed. It was about time they should work together and come out with an album or something, they sounded incredible.  
  
This particular day, the crew was traveling through hyperspace towards Mars. Alex and Spike were in the living area playing together. They were playing a song that Alex learned off of a CD by a band called 'Sublime.'  
"Lovin', is what I got!" she sang as both of them played with smiles on their faces. She continued to sing and Spike would occasionally toss in a few words to try and make her laugh. Ed was across from them watching the TV through the computer.  
"Yay yay for the music!" she said happily as they ended.   
"And now, today's guest is a well known amazing male model from Mars." A woman said from the screen with a smile. Alex continued to strum her instrument paying no mind. "Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Mr. Blade McGowan!" her eyes went wide and she stopped playing immediately.  
"Yay! Blade is so cool!!!" Ed said bouncing around on the chair but keeping her eyes focused on the screen as the tall silver haired man walked out onto the set. Alex practically dropped her guitar and raced to the screen to see. There he sat, barely smiling at all which was unusual for him. He was always the cheerful type. He looked like he hadn't slept in days and was just angry at the world.  
"Ed, is this live?" Alex asked. Ed nodded.  
"Yessiree bob!" she giggled. Spike was still curious as to what just happened.  
"Alex? Don't tell me you're obsessed with him too!" He said with a grin. Alex looked at him and didn't smile. Spike didn't know what he did, why was she acting like this?  
"Welcome to the show Mr. McGowan, thank you for coming." The host said with a smile and a shake of his hand.  
"It's a pleasure. Thank you for inviting me." he said. His voice had changed dramatically from the last time she saw him. He sounded angry and annoyed, not a single sense of happiness could be picked up anywhere.   
"So what brings you back to Mars? You've been away a while, just some personal time to yourself?"  
"So to speak. But I guess you could also call it business." He said flicking a few stray silver hairs out of his face. "I came back to visit and meet up with an old friend. It's been a while since I've seen her."  
"Ah, a girlfriend?" she asked with a sly grin. He only reclined back in the chair.  
"Well, it's a difficult situation. We grew up together but then we lost touch for a number of years. A few months ago I saw her again and then I went away on this trip. Now I'm anxious to see how she's been." He said. Alex could feel the tears welling in her eyes and slowly beginning to fall.  
"Alex?" Spike said as he noticed the tears. She didn't pull her eyes from the screen. What was wrong with him? He looked and acted so different now. She wiped her eyes and still watched.  
"I see, well, I hope you find her and get in touch with her. She must be happy to know you're looking for her."  
"Well, I don't know about that. We left each other on uneasy terms; I'm not sure how she'll react when I call her later today." He said.  
"NO!" She screamed as she jumped to her feet. The tears just streamed down her face now.  
"Alex!" Spike yelled still oblivious as to what was going on. She payed him no mind as she ran to her room and slammed the door shut behind her. collapsing to her bed in a mass of tears, she just cried and cried into her pillow until her door creaked open.  
"WHAT?" she cried.  
"Sweetheart, what's wrong?" Spike asked as he stepped inside and pulled the door shut behind him. He sat on the bed beside her and rubbed her back.  
"Nothing. Don't worry about it." she sobbed.  
"Bullshit, if nothing was wrong you wouldn't be in here bawling your eyes out. What's wrong?" he asked again sounding slightly angry at first with the swear word but the becoming soft and gentle as his hand upon her back.  
"Spike, it's nothing that concerns you. It's something I need to take care of on my own." She said turning her head to look up at him. Her eyes were all red and puffy, damp with her tears.  
"Hon, just tell me." he said as he leant over and kissed her softly on her forehead.  
"I hate it when you do that." She said as the tears came forth once again.  
"And I hate it when you cry like this."  
"Shut up! I know Blade. I'm the girl he was talking about. We grew up as kids but then lost touch after my parents were killed and back when I first moved in, I ran into him again. We talked and then he…he had to leave. I'll leave it at that." She said as her eyes wandered to a far off corner in her room. Just then her door opened and Ed was standing in her doorway.  
"Alex? Jet said he wanted to see you." She said. Alex sat up.  
"You gonna be alright?" Spike asked taking her hand. She wiped her eyes again and tried to smile.  
"Yea, lemmie go see what the old man wants." She said as he stood up and pulled her to her feet. They came out of her room and she went up to the piloting area where he was navigating the ship. She walked along the cold metal floor to the end of the hall where she entered the huge windowed area. Jet sat at the helm, playing solitaire on the computer. She knocked on the doorway and he turned around.  
"Oh, it's you. I wanted to talk to you about something." He said as he closed the solitaire program.  
"What? If it's about the cherry bomb in the toilet, it wasn't me." she said crossing her arms.  
"No, no it's not that but I am still mad about that." He said irritated with the topic being brought up again. "You remember how for your birthday you didn't get anything?"  
"Yea, how could I not? I was all giddy and happy and I didn't get shit." She said pouting.  
"Well, the only reason was because I was saving up money from the bounties for it. I finally got the money for one and we're going personal craft shopping for you as your birthday gift when we land and dock." He said with a smile.  
"You're kidding!!!" She squeaked. He shook his head.  
"Nope, so get ready to go out, we'll be leaving soon." He said with a slight chuckle and a smile. Alex was ecstatic.  
"Thank you so much Jet! You're the best!" she said happily and giving him a huge hug.  
"Yea, yea, hurry up before I change my mind!" He yelled after her as she skipped off down the hall. The problem with Blade still existed, but it wasn't of any importance to her at the moment; she was finally getting her own vehicle! 


	22. A Little Girl's Dream!

Alex entered the living area all smiles.  
"Hey, what are you all happy about?" Spike asked with a smile. She stopped and hugged him.  
"We're going out shopping!" she cheered. Spike's expression went from amused to disappointed.   
"Shopping?" he asked sounding so unenthusiastically. It was the typical male response to the subject of shopping with a female.  
"Not just shopping, but personal craft shopping! I'm getting a vehicle to call my own!!!" she exclaimed joyfully. "I won't have to borrow Jet's cause I'll have my own!" Spike smiled.   
"I know. I was in on it since I came back to the ship. He said he wanted to get you something but he didn't know what. Now that h knew you were a born racer, he decided it would benefit everyone if you got a ship of your own. All of that bounty money was put into it's own little account for you." He explained. Alex was still totally giddy about the entire situation.  
"I just can't wait to get it and fly it!" She said still ecstatic. She dashed off to their room and shut the door, dressing herself comfortably yet presentable. She pulled on a pair of loose fit faded blue jeans and an old football jersey she had found at a thrift shop. After pulling it all on and then pulling her hair into a ponytail, she pulled on a pair of her own hiking boots and let the jeans cover them. she pulled a few strands of her bangs out of the ponytail and let them hang as she heard the ship's engines power down and shut off. She grew even more excited. Jet and Spike were waiting out in the living area and when she came out, Jet grabbed a debit card and put it in his pocket.  
"Ready dear?" Spike asked, holding his hand out for her to take. She smiled and took it.  
"Why of course!" she said with a smile. They headed for the door.  
"Ed, don't blow the ship up please?" Jet called.  
"Right-o cap'n Joe!" She barked with a salute. The two men and the girl walked out the door together and out onto the docks. When they were out of the area of the docks, Jet stopped and thought a moment but started walking again.  
"Alright, there's a new and used craft dealership about seven blocks up. we can start there and see what they have." He said as they walked through the bustling streets. They passed vendors, preachers, and other various people that were looking for money. They reached the dealer and looked at the building. It was huge and looked very expensive. They went inside anyway and saw many different ships. Compacts, economy sized, two-seaters, unmanned delivery ships, and just anything your heart could desire in a craft. The three wandered through the showroom for about five minutes.  
"Hello, may I help you?" A man in a suit asked as he approached the three.  
"Uh, yes, we're looking for a personal craft for this woman here and we don't exactly know what we should be looking at." Jet said formally and politely. Both Spike and Alex were amazed at his use of manners.  
"Well, what is the lady looking for?" he asked Alex. She thought a moment before answering his question.  
"Well, I need something with high speed and is reliable. All the extras include the audio system, air cooling system, and…room to work on it and improve it like taking things out and improving it." she said.  
"A true racer, just like her dad." Spike said with a grin. The sales person seemed to think for a short time.   
"Well, I don't know of anything in you're price range," he said as he glanced them over, looking particularly at the way they were dressed, "but there's a used craft lot a few blocks down." He said. Jet was irritated with the way he spoke.  
"Oh, I have plenty of money, don't let our looks fool you. You just show us what the lady could use and we'll pay up front today." He said with a smile. The salesman sighed.  
"Alright, right this way please." He said walking towards a double glass door. It led them out to an open lot with a few crafts scattered about. They were all gray and unfinished, but looked sleek and fast anyway. She could recognize one ship at the far end. Its landing gear was buried in the dirt from sitting for so long. It was another Swordfish II, just like Spike owned. "Are you looking for something new or old?"  
"Preferably an older craft, but updated to a new model." She said looking around. The salesman pulled a tiny keypad from his pocket and pushed a button. After a few seconds, a yellow and blue ship pulled around and parked.  
"This is a brand new model we received from Japan, on Earth. It's a Honda Speed XRC. Top racers who have won several races with them recommended it. It costs a mere 5 million woolongs." He said as the tree potential customers circled the vessel. Alex shook her head.  
"Nah, it's not…well, it just doesn't appeal to me." she said . The salesman pushed another button and it flew off before another landed before them. it was a deep forest green color and looked about as sleek as the Honda.  
"This is another from Earth. It's an updated ship version of an old automobile they used to make back in the 1900's. This is a Pontiac Firebird LP. It's known for it's sound system and extras, but also has a high speed and is also used in races. It's not new, maybe about 20 or so years old." He said as the two guys and girl circled it, again looking it over. Alex stood and looked at it.  
"Well, I know if my dad was still around, he'd shoot me if I drove one of those." She said. Spike sat and thought.  
"Yea, he probably would. He never raced with anything other than his Rocket. Isn't that what he used at the Equatorial?" he asked.  
"Yea, and he still holds the record. God I can't wait to get something to race." She said with a sigh.  
"Your father? I'm sorry, I couldn't help but overhear the conversation." He said prying at her father's name.  
"Yea, I'm James Bondora's little girl." She said yawning. She wasn't looking at the man, but she heard the tiny control hit the ground. She could only smile.  
"Oh, forgive me. I didn't know!" he said quickly picking up the control. The craft before them lifted off and disappeared. "Any particular make or model you would like to see?"  
"Well, I told you what I was looking…" She said as she trailed off. Her eyes were set on something.  
"Yes? What is it?" he asked. Before any of the men standing around knew it, she was taking off across the lot in a dead sprint to a corner full of bushes. There were a few multi colored pieces of metal sticking out from them. The three men followed behind her across the field. She got to the shady corner and started peeking through the bushes, trying to see what was inside. By the time the men made it over, she was pulling out her gun.  
"Alex, what are you doing?!" Jet asked. She cocked the gun and shot at the ground where the bush connected to the roots. The bushes slowly collapsed, revealing a rusted and old ship.  
"This can't be a…no!" she said shooting the rest of the shrubs away and clearing them with a huge smile. Spike and Jet were clueless and the salesman was freaking out.  
"Alex. What is it?" Spike asked as he wrinkled his nose at the craft that was covered with leaves. She couldn't help but smile wider.  
"The ship I've dreamed of owning since I was a little girl." She said as she ran her hands over it and circled it. 


	23. What IS It?

"Um, Alex? Like Spike said…what is it?" Jet asked. She climbed up to the cockpit and looked through the dirty glass to see it almost totally intact.  
"It's the first space-worthy craft also suitable for racing. It's a Ford Pegasus GT, a spin-off of their highly popular automobile the Ford Mustang. Mustang production started back in 1964 and continued until they stopped producing cars all together. This is one of the first models ever made." She said sitting on a wing. She was getting covered with rust and dirt, but she could care less.  
"Wouldn't you rather something newer?" Jet asked as he cocked his eyebrow.  
"Yes, we have a brand new Pegasus model just delivered this morning." The salesman offered. She scowled.  
"I've dreamed of having one of these since I was able to understand racing. I want this one. Pidge can restore it for me if I give him the cash." She said as she stood and put her fists on her hips. Jet sighed.  
"How much for it?" he asked the salesman. He thought for a moment.  
"Well, it's in poor condition and I didn't even know it was back here. That and since you are the daughter of a legend…half a million."  
"SOLD!" Alex screamed before anyone could say anything. Jet shrugged his shoulders and shelled the money out.  
"And how do you plan on getting it back to the ship?" he asked the girl.  
"I will carry the damned thing if I have to." She said.  
"Um, complementary tow service is available." The salesman pocketed the cash and made a note of it. Spike looked at him.  
"Is it free?"  
"Yes, otherwise it wouldn't be complimentary." He said as they started back across the field. They noticed Alex wasn't following. They turned to see her sitting on the wing again.  
"Alex, are you coming?" Jet asked.  
"I'll stay and wait for the tow." She said. He shrugged his shoulders and the three men walked off, leaving her sitting on the ship. She was incredibly giddy as she sat there, she couldn't wait to get back to the ship and call Pidge and tell him what she had. After a few moments, a tow ship pulled up and the driver hopped out.  
"Jeeze, what a piece of shit. You sure you don't want to take it to a scrap yard?" he said as he hooked it up to move onto the flatbed. She nodded.  
"I know what I'm getting myself into. Bondora's little girl knows what she's doing." She said as she helped hook it up.  
"You're Bondora's daughter? Damn, you must know. You planning on racing it?"  
"After it's restored." She said as she finished fastening the last of the connectors. She stepped back as it was raised into the air and was set down on the flatbed. The landing gear still had grass and sticks around it, but she could clear them off later. She jumped into the cab with the driver and they drove back to the Bebop.   
  
Jet and Spike had arrived back at the Bebop before the tow and Alex had gotten there so they could make sure there was room to store the hunk of junk. There was plenty of room, now that Faye was gone and her zip craft wasn't taking up two spaces. They cleared it out and made sure there was plenty of breathing room for any needed storage of the tools and parts. Both of their crafts were at the other end of the hangar, which left plenty of space for the rusted out new purchase to be parked for a long period of time.  
" You know, she's probably just going to get it back, work on it for a few weeks, and then give up to a scrap yard." Spike said with a sigh as they walked to the open doorway and runway.  
"Nah, not her. Did you see the way she not only ran across the field for it but also seemed to see it through the bushes it was covered in? She'll work on this until the day she deems it done." Jet said as the tow ship pulled onto the dock next to the ship. Now that the Pegasus wasn't covered completely in shrubbery, they were able to get a better look at it. The overall body was boxy but thin and streamlined. Where the wings attached to the body, it curved in and opened up an air vent on each side that could be used as either airflow to the engine or a deceleration device in space. The dome of the cockpit wasn't the typical round shape; it was a pointed teardrop shape that was sleeker and more aerodynamic. The wings were almost the same as Spike's Swordfish II but the plates on the wing tips were set more forward than that of the ones on the Swordfish II. The landing gear was still entangled with pieces of shrubbery and dirt from when it was anchored into the ground. It was many different colors: green, blue, brown, and rusty orange. It was scratched, dented, torn apart, and the glass on the cockpit dome was cracked in several places with some holes that looked to be from bullets. The wooden planks groaned as the tow came to a stop right next to the large deck of the Bebop.   
"Hey! You got a ramp for me to get up onto your deck?" the tow driver asked after rolling down his window. As he did this, Alex hopped out. She jumped from the wooden planked dock over onto the metal deck of the Bebop, still grinning happily. Jet held down a button on the inside of the large doorway of the hangar area and a sheet of metal extended from the side of the deck. He let go as it touched the side of the dock with a quiet thud. The tow driver maneuvered around to pull onto the deck and pulled into the hangar. The area that was clear in the back was where the Pegasus was unloaded and parked.   
"Thanks a lot, would you like something to drink? A sandwich maybe?" Alex asked with a smile as the tow driver readied to pull back out and leave.  
"Why thank you. Do you mind?" he asked as he parked the rig. Alex shook her head.  
"Not at all! Please come in!" she insisted. Spike and Jet sighed. They'd have to share their food with a stranger. He stepped out and all four of them walked into the ship and to the kitchen. They made sandwiches and talked a while before the driver realized he should be working. Jet escorted him to his rig and left Alex and Spike in the kitchen alone.  
"Alex, what possessed you to get that piece of junk?" He asked her as he took a few gulps of his beer. She was sipping her water when he asked.  
"That so called piece of junk is the ship I've dreamed of owning since I was a little girl. As soon as I was able to comprehend the idea of racing ships and even cars, it was the one thing I've ever wanted." She said slightly annoyed with his tone of voice when he asked the question.  
"Well, how are you going to work on it? You don't know the slightest thing about rebuilding ships!" He said with a grin. Alex stared him down. "Or do you?"  
"I know some, not enough to rebuild it by myself." She said as she reached into her back pocket and pulled out her wallet.  
"Well, I don't know a whole lot either so don't ask me to help out much." He said after taking another swig of his beer. She pulled a business card out of a pocket of the wallet and tossed it across the table to him.  
"I never said you or Jet had to help. I have my own friends." She said with a smile. Spike picked up the card and read it. 'Pidge Bordeaux: Racer and Restorer' was arranged neatly in bold black lettering in the center.  
"And how do you plan on getting it to him to work on?" he asked as he slid it back to her across the table. She smiled as she took it.  
"See, I thought of this while I was waiting for the tow guy to come and hook it up. We dock here every Friday night and stay through Sunday afternoon or evening. The whole time we're docked, Pidge comes down and we work on the ship together until I feel it's drivable at least. After then, maybe we go every other week or so. Of course if we can't make it one weekend I'll call him and tell him that we won't be around that weekend." She explained with a smile on her face the entire time. Spike sighed and grinned.  
"Damn, you have it all figured out. I should've known better. My sweetheart has everything figured out before I can even think things through." Alex smiled when he said this and then stood.  
"Yup. What would you do without me hun?" she said as she headed to the living area but stopped next to him first. He pulled the beer bottle away from his lips and met hers as she leaned down and pressed her lips into his. With a quick smacking noise, they had kissed quickly and then she walked on into the living area. She sat at the computer and dialed his shop number up and waited for him to pick up. After a few rings, it clicked and an image of a greasy Pidge appeared on her screen in what looked like his garage. He was wiping his hands with an old rag as the image appeared. 


	24. A Loving Moment

"Pidge Bordeaux, racer and restorer." He said as he wiped his brow. Alex grinned.  
"Pidge! It's Alex Bondora!" she said happily. He squinted and then smiled.  
"Ah! Alex, it's good to hear from you! How you been?" he asked as he tossed the rag away.  
"I've been good, how's about yourself?"  
"Meh, could be better. The damned Stinger is acting up again." he said as he turned to look at it but looked back at the screen.   
"Almost time for something new, Pidge. My dad used to tell you that all the time!" she said as she shook her head.  
"Ah, your dad and telling me what to do…" he said with a sigh.  
"Anyway, I called you for a reason." She said getting back to the point of her call.  
"Eh? What's up? You in trouble or something?"  
"No, nothing like that. I actually bought myself a project and was wondering if you could come and help me out. It's too much for me to tackle by myself and aside from my dad, you're the next best craft restorer anyone knows." She explained.  
"Well, it depends on what you got." He said as he crossed his arms and looked like he was thinking about the situation.  
"How's about a GT Peg?" she grinned.   
"WHAT? You got yourself a new one didn't you?" he asked. She shook her head.  
"Nope, one of the very first models actually. I went shopping with my crew and I was looking at new crafts and it caught my eye across a field. Covered with shrubbery like it had been there forever."  
"Alex, you'd better not be pulling my leg. I swear if you give me a heart attack…" he said before he was cut off.  
"Mr. Bordeaux! Spike Spiegel!" he said leaning on the back of the couch and looking into the screen. Pidge recognized him almost instantly.  
"Ah yes, Mr. Spiegel. How are you? I didn't know you two knew each other." He said somewhat surprised.  
"Actually, Spike and I are dating. We live together on the ship." She cut in. Pidge smiled.  
"That's great! Congratulations! I guess I should tell Jordan you aren't available anymore huh?"  
"He's still obsessed with me?" she laughed.  
"Who's Jordan?" Spike asked.  
"Jordan is my son. He's about 4 years younger than Alex and has always been after her to go out on a date." He said with a chuckle. "But anyway Alex, I want to see this Peg. You say it's a GT, right?"  
"Yep, I know the difference between a Peg and a GT Peg. It's definitely a GT. It has the air vents on the side and everything." She said. We're docked about a mile and a half to two miles away from the Equatorial Circuit if you want to come down." She said.  
"How long are you going to be there?"  
"Probably until tonight."  
"Let me give you a call back after I finish up here so I can let you know, alright?"  
"Sure Pidge, no problem."  
"Alright, talk to you soon hun." He said.  
"Okay Pidge. Hey, bring Jordan with you tonight!" she said preparing to close the link.  
"If he's around I'll let him know he's invited." He said bringing a hand up near the screen.  
"Alright, see you later."  
"Later Alex." He said as he closed the link. She closed hers and reclined back into the couch. She rested her head on the top of the couch and found herself staring straight up at the ceiling. Spike appeared over her and looked down, his tie hung in her face.  
"Yes dear?" she asked with a smile. He smiled down at her.  
"Eh, just realizing how beautiful you are." He said. He pulled her hair out of the ponytail it was in and ran his fingers through it. She reached her hands up and sifted her fingers through his puffy amateur 'fro and wrapped it around her fingers. It was so soft and the fact that it naturally was so puffy just made her curious as to how he got it like this. He used his free hand to toss his tie over his shoulder to keep out of her face. He sank to his knees and wrapped his arms around her chin as if he was to choke her. She let his hair loose from her fingers and just combed her fingers through his hair now.   
"Spike?" she asked him.  
"Mmm?"   
"What made me stand out to you? I mean, what made you fall for me?" she asked as she shut her eyes whilst he massaged her scalp with his fingertips.   
"Well," he said with a sigh as he gazed her beauty, "not only are you incredibly gorgeous, you're just so easy to talk to and you listen. We have tons in common and we make each other laugh." She smiled as he spoke, but tears welled in her shut eyes and poured down either side of her face, towards her ears. Spike was confused; why was she doing this? "Alex?"  
"Mmm?"  
"Why are you crying?" he asked as he wiped her tears away from her soft skin. She opened her eyes and looked up at him. The deep blue pools were wet with tears as they looked into his eyes.  
"Because I'm happy." She said with a sniffle and a smile. He smiled in return and kissed her forehead. She took his cheeks in her hands and brought his lips to hers. He placed his hands over hers and deepened the kiss.   
"Now now children, clam your hormones." Jet scolded playfully from the doorway. Both Spike and Alex started laughing and stopped kissing at Jet's remark.  
"Sorry, couldn't help myself for a moment there Jet." Spike said as he kissed Alex one last time on her lips. Jet sighed.  
"You two should really keep your love life in the bedroom. PDA's are really quite distracting sometimes." He said as he began to rummage through the fridge. "Where's the rest of the beers?"  
"They're in the other refrigerator. They took up too much space in this one so I moved them." Alex said as she glanced over.   
"Arg, I'll bring some out to this one. If I come back and you two are playing tonsil hockey again, I'm putting you both in separate bedrooms again." he said as he walked out. Spike smiled and returned to staring into Alex's eyes.  
"So we won't get caught." He said with a smile as they pressed their lips together again. This time, Alex was the one to deepen the kiss as she kept her hands on his cheeks. His hands had wandered down to hers and he was stroking them softly with his thumbs. It was then Alex began to think, they had been together like this for over two months now, but was this as far as they'd go? Especially after what happened to her years ago, would she ever give herself up to him for a night of passion? The thought was quickly erased from her mind as the computer beeped with an incoming call. It was an audio and visual so Alex started to pull away from Spike but not before he could get one last kiss in.  
"Alright hun, it's probably Pidge so disappear for a few minutes, okay?" she said.  
"Aww, but I want to see the look on his face when he says he's coming over to see the piece of crap you just bought!" he whined childishly. She pushed him back.  
"Oh go help Jet with the beers!" she said as she leaned forward to accept the call. He walked away and was right at the open door when she pushed the button. The image popped up just as he left the room. "Hello there, Pidge." She said with a smile, assuming it was him. How wrong she was.  
"Alex, this isn't Pidge, dear." A seemingly irritated voice came from the screen. Her eyes opened wide as an image of her childhood friend appeared on the screen looking overly deprived of sleep and slightly angry.  
"Blade!" she gasped as he cracked a crooked smile. 


	25. Hurt in More Ways Than One

His bright blue eyes had grown to an icy steel blue and his silvery hair had grown long and was obscuring half of his face as if hiding something.  
"You say that as if it's a bad thing. How are you Alex?" he asked. His voice had grown raspy and cold. No comfort whatsoever could be sensed. She was paralyzed with fear as he spoke.  
"I…I'm alright. How have you been?" she managed to stutter out. He leaned back in the large chair he was seated in.   
"I'm doing well…very well." He said. She saw his new clothing. A black coat with gold trim and a golden chain holding it somewhat closed was worn over a black suit with a black button-down shirt and tie. "I've been traveling a lot lately and I'm only going to be here until the end of the week."  
"Modeling work?" she asked, wondering why he'd be traveling so much.  
"No, I got bored with modeling and broke into corporate world. The money is much better now anyway." He said as he rested his cheek on a balled up fist supported by an elbow on the arm of the chair. The hair that hid half of his face fell out of the way, revealing more of his pale skin.  
"Good for you I suppose." She said nervously as she pulled her feet up onto the couch and sat with her legs crossed. He grinned.  
"Well, since I'll only be here for another day or two, I was wondering if you'd like to accompany me out to dinner tonight." His speech had grown more articulate and eloquent. She wasn't used to this. In the background, he could recognize two men in the similar outfit standing on either side of a door that reached to the ceiling.   
"I'm not sure. Its pretty short notice for me and I don't know." She said nervously as she scratched the back of her neck. He ran his fingers through his hair and leaned forward with his forearms resting on what looked like a desk.   
"Just dinner tonight before I leave. Who knows when we'll see each other again? I've already booked a table at a wonderful restaurant in the city." He said trying to play the guilt card. It worked.  
"Alright, I'll go so we can catch up." she sighed nervously as Spike and Jet walked in. from the door, you could get a clear shot at the screen. Spike glanced over at the screen and just about dropped the bottles he was carrying. He stopped dead and stared at the screen.  
"Wonderful. Wear your most elegant dress and a ride will be waiting outside for you at 7 PM tonight." He said as he leaned back in his chair and folded his hands neatly on his lap. She shot him a curious glance, wondering how fancy was the restaurant.  
"Alright. See you then." She said almost depressingly. Her eyes sank to the floor.  
"See you tonight, dear." He said as he closed the link. Alex's eyes shot up to the screen but before she could say anything, the screen was blank. She could feel tears welling in her eyes, but quickly wiped them away as she stood. Spike was still stopped dead, half frightened of what he saw. Without wandering eyes, Alex walked into her and Spike's bedroom and started to collect money. She reached for her envelope of cash stored in the top drawer of the bedside table and as she did, she looked at the framed picture of her and Spike dressed as old time cowboys…well, she was dressed as a saloon girl and he was the cowboy. How he held her close in the picture and how they looked at each other. She remembered the day they took that picture was one of the best she had ever lived through. With a lone tear streaking down her cheek, she pulled out the entire envelope of cash, folded it up, and pocketed it. She pulled on her black trench coat and walked out of the room. Spike was already waiting for her, sitting on the end of the couch closest to their door with his arms folded across his chest.  
"What was that all about?" he asked not even lifting his eyes from the ground with a questionable tone of voice.  
"Spike, I…" she began before she was cut off.  
"WHO THE HELL WAS THAT?" he screamed at her as he swiveled on the couch to face her. He was angry, she could hear it in his voice and see it in his eyes. She started to cry. Jet was watching from the kitchen and wanted to intervene, but didn't know how to. Without looking up, she spoke again.  
"Spike, it's nothing for you to worry about," she said as tears streamed down her face and fell to the floor, "it's something I have to deal with. My past that's catching up with me." she said. He jumped to his feet and in a rage; he grabbed each one of her wrists. She winced in pain as he squeezed them tight.  
"What are you doing with him? TELL ME THE TRUTH!" He yelled again.  
"You're hurting me!" she cried as she looked with her teary eyes in to his enraged soul. He suddenly realized what he was doing and slowly loosened his grip. He seemed as if his spirit had been broken. She pulled her wrists back, away from his grasp and backed away from him. With a saddened expression growing on his face, he slowly sat back down on the couch. She quickly ran to the doorway in a flood of tears and stopped to look at him. He was staring at the palms of his shaky hands and breathing heavy. She looked to Jet who was walking over to her. She cried and ran to him only to be wrapped in his comforting arms. She cried into his jumpsuit as he rubbed her back.  
"Alex, he needs some time to calm down. Try and stay out of his way for the rest of the night." He said softly as he let her go. She looked up at him and nodded. Taking one last look at a truly and utterly distraught Spike, she walked out and left the ship. As she stepped onto the dock, she felt her eyes tear up again. The anger she saw in his eyes followed by what seemed like a mental shock scared her. Why did he act like that? She had told him that she and Blade knew each other, but…but he didn't know what Blade looked like! He must've thought he was Vicious! Thinking the situation through Alex became upset to the point she collapsed to the wooden planks in a flood of tears. 


	26. Romantic Forgiveness

Back inside the ship, Jet was watching from a distance as Spike trembled and continued breathing heavily as if he had just ran a marathon. He walked up to his hysterical friend and stood at his side. He sat doubled over with both of his hands grasping large amounts of his hair, clutching them tight enough to turn his knuckles white. Jet didn't know how to break the ice until Spike spoke.  
"What…what just happened?" he panted heavily. Jet could see his eyes were opened as wide as they could go.  
"Spike, are you alright?" Jet asked as he leaned over and put his hand on his back. By this time, Spike's face was drenched in sweat.  
"What just happened Jet? What did I do?" Spike asked as if he was a scared child. Jet didn't know how to explain it other than just coming out and saying it.  
"Alex was invited out to dinner with a male friend of hers and you just flipped out on her." he said slowly and calmly. His eyes darted around as if trying to recall the events.  
"What did I do to her?" he asked becoming even more upset. Jet swallowed hard and took a deep breath.   
"When you saw her talking to him, you just stopped dead as if you saw a ghost. Then after she went into your bedroom and came out, you questioned her but then resorted to screaming." He said. With each detail, Spike became more and more distraught, breathing heavier and shaking more. "You grabbed her by her wrists and squeezed hard enough to hurt her. When she told you that you were hurting her, you just loosened your grip and started acting like this." It was silent for a moment before Jet heard a dripping noise. He looked down and saw the tears streaming from Spike's eyes.  
"God, why did I do that? What happened?" he said sadly. He wasn't sobbing, his tone was full of sorrow and anger at himself for what he had done. He let loose the grip on his hair and used his hands to hold his head up. With an elbow on each knee, his hands cradled his forehead as his tears continued to spill onto the floor. His breathing had slowed, but he was still shaking like a leaf in the wind.  
"Spike, calm down. Just apologize to her when she comes home. Tell her you overreacted and you're sorry. Everything'll be alright after you two talk." He said to calm his comrade. With a deep breath, Spike nodded and sat up and leaned back onto the couch. His face was soaked with sweat and tears so he looked for something to wipe his face. Jet sat beside him on the couch and pulled Spike's handkerchief out of his pocket for him and handed it to him. He wiped his face and blew his nose before tossing it down onto the table. He sat silent for a few moments, gathering his thoughts. Jet placed his hand on Spike's shoulder. "You'll be alright." He said as he stood and walked away leaving Spike on the couch by himself. After a moment, Spike got up and went into his old bedroom and came back out with his guitar. He sat back down on the couch, kicked off his boots, and just sat and played for a while, thinking of how to make everything right again.   
  
At the same time, Alex had picked herself up off the dock and straightened herself up before walking into the town. She wandered from dress shop to dress shop looking for the perfect dress. The whole time she looked, she thought about what happened before she left. She looked at dresses and tried to pick something out that Spike would also like. She went into the fourth store and started browsing around. She looked around in there for about half an hour until she came across a long black dress that seemed almost too small for her. She took it to a dressing room and tried it on. It was skintight and was very revealing. The neckline dipped down almost to her stomach but stopped just short of the bottom of her ribcage. It wrapped around her breasts and the rest of her body like a second skin. The slit on the left side came just over half way up her thigh and the straps were very thin. The back dipped down to her lower back and came to a 'V' point. It was a soft material, a solid black. She looked at the price tag so she could get an idea of how much she'd be able to spend on other things she'd need like shoes and a shawl. She quickly changed back to her regular clothes and returned to the store to look for something for her shoulders. She came across a mesh-like material shoulder wrap for cheap, so she took that. She paid for the dress and shawl and headed for the shoe store. She found a pair of black stilettos that were surprisingly comfortable so she bought them and a pair of stockings that covered her foot enough to wear the shoe comfortably and not be seen. By this time, she had been gone from the ship about 3 hours and was ready to head back. She hoped that Spike had calmed down by now. She took her time walking back to the ship, window-shopping the whole way. She stopped for a quick bite to eat at a little café since her stomach was growling and she wasn't eager to get back to the ship. After she had finished, she decided it was time to head back and bite the bullet. She figured it was getting late anyway and she had to get ready soon. She finally reached the docks and walked out to the ship. She heard a guitar playing up on the deck, so she decided just to go in the door that was right there. It opened and she walked in. Her footsteps echoed in the empty corridor as she emerged into the living area. Neither Spike, nor Jet were anywhere to be seen, so she just went into their bedroom to put the dress away for after she showered. It was about 4 in the afternoon by now and she decided that she'd work on cleaning up the Pegasus. She walked up into the hangar and saw that the door to the deck was wide open. She looked out and saw Spike sitting out on the edge, strumming his guitar. She wasn't sure if he had calmed down or not, so she just walked over to the rusted craft she had just gotten and started pulling the weeds and junk out of the landing gear. As all of the stuff began to crumble to the ground, the sound echoed out of the ship, reaching Spike's ears. He turned and looked and saw piles of dirt around the front landing gear and heard the sound of someone walking around on the top of the Pegasus. He picked up his amp and guitar and decided it would be a good idea to apologize now while she was right there. He walked into the hangar and as his eyes adjusted, he saw her messing around with the cockpit dome. He set the instrument and amp down on the floor just inside the doorway with a clunk, which caused Alex to look up. She saw him standing there watching her and then went back to working around the cockpit.  
"Alex." He spoke softly. She had a wrench in her hand and was loosening the dome from the body as he spoke.  
"What?" she asked as she continued working, sounding as if he was bothering her. Spike knew she was mad at him and didn't want to talk to him after what he did, which made him even more nervous to talk to her. He took a deep breath and spoke as she worked facing away from him.  
"I'm sorry…about today," he said slowly, as if choking on the words. She stopped what she was doing and listened without turning and looking at him. "I didn't know what I was doing until after I did it. I guess I did it because I thought I saw Vicious. I'm sorry if I hurt you and I hope you forgive me." The silence that followed was deafening. Spike dropped his eyes to the floor; maybe she wasn't going to forgive him after all. Suddenly there was a soft thud and he looked up to see Alex standing next to the Pegasus with the wrench still in her hand, but she looked as if she was about to cry. He took an uneasy step towards her and she did the same. When they both realized they had each been forgiven, Alex dropped the wrench and ran into Spike's arms as he ran for hers. The tears poured down both their cheeks as they held each other close. She buried her face into his shoulder and he buried his into her sweet-smelling hair.  
"I love you Spike, please don't be mad at me." She cried.  
"Alex, I could never be mad at you. I love you too much. I could never live with myself if something like this happened again." he said with a sniffle. They just stood holding each other for a little while, realizing how blessed they were to have one another.   
"Are you alright now Spike?" Alex asked him as she let go and pulled away. He kissed her forehead and then managed a shaky smile.  
"I think so."  
"I've never seen you cry. I guess that means something." She said as she kissed his cheek.  
"Yea, it means we were meant for each other." He said as he kissed her deeply, taking her breath away. Their salty tears tried to ruin the moment, but they just couldn't. 


	27. Dress like this for me more often

"Forgiveness is such a wonderful thing." Jet said from the doorway leading into the rest of the ship. Both Alex and Spike heard him, but didn't care to look. They were too wrapped up in each other to care about what was going on around them. The world could be ending and they could care less. After standing there for about a minute or two, they realized that it would be a good idea to end it for the time being. Arm in arm, they walked out onto the sunny deck and just looked out across the ocean. It was Mars, but the ocean was still there.  
"Spike?" Alex asked with her arm wrapped around him.  
"Mmm?"  
"Tell me about Julia." She said as she rested her head on his shoulder.  
"Well, I would say that she was the most beautiful and wonderful woman I've ever known, but I would be lying." He said as he wrapped his arms around her. They stood on the edge of the ship and just gazed out. She didn't want to go out tonight and go to dinner with Blade, but she did promise him and he was her best friend. The sun was lowering in the sky and she realized it had to be getting later by now.  
"Spike, I have to start getting ready." She said as she pulled her arm off of him. He let her go and they turned to walk back into the ship. Arm in arm, they entered the hangar and then the ship. When they got to the living area, Jet was in the kitchen, sautéing something up, but not enough for three.  
"What are you making?" Spike asked as he sniffed in the general direction.  
"Special. Bell peppers and beef." He smiled. Alex continued to the bedroom.  
"Please tell me there is actually beef in it this time." he sighed as he sank down on the couch and turned the computer on to catch Big Shot.   
"Oh, don't worry, there is." He said as it sizzled and smoked. Alex came back out of the bedroom wrapped in nothing but a large bath towel. Spike couldn't help but stare.  
"What?" she asked him with a sly grin.  
"Nothing. Just…uh…" he stuttered as he tried to find an excuse. She couldn't help but smile.  
"Keep your eyes from wandering, cowboy." She winked as she disappeared into the bathroom to shower. Spike's face flushed a bright red as he turned back to the TV.   
"Hey Jet?" he asked as he watched the screen.  
"Yea Spike?"  
"Tell me about this Blade friend of hers." He asked with a yawn. he heard the sound of the wooden spoon Jet was holding hit the floor.  
"He's…he's just a friend of hers. They've known each other since they were kids." He said trying to avoid the truth.  
"Really? He has a strange likeliness to Vicious if you ask me." he chuckled.   
"Yea isn't that a bit strange?" Jet said uneasily. Spike knew there was something more but he couldn't put his finger on it.  
"What does he do for a living?"  
"Uh…I think he's a male model. Yea, last I heard he was a model." He said quickly. He knew he sounded suspicious, but he couldn't help it. The clock read 6:16 when Alex came back out of the shower and went into the bedroom to get dressed. She was still dripping wet as she walked across the floor, leaving wet footprints with each step. Spike eyed her as she strutted by. She smiled as she closed the door behind her. She pulled the dress out of the box it was so carefully folded up in and draped it across the bed as she toweled off. She pulled on her undergarments and then blow-dried her hair. After it was thoroughly dry, she put it up into a french twist and let two locks hang down either side of her face. She picked up her small curling iron and wrapped the tresses around them and then releasing them into two curly cues. She pulled the dress on over her head and then straightened it out; my god she looked good. She pulled out the wrap and let it cross her back and drape over her elbows as she posed before the full-length mirror. She tossed it to the bed and returned to the vanity mirror to put on her makeup.   
  
Out in the living area, Spike glanced at his watch, seeing that it read 6:52. She had been getting ready for over half an hour! He walked over into the kitchen area where Jet was plating up the food he was making for him and Spike.   
"Jet? Why do women take so long to get ready? I mean, a quick shower and some fresh clothes is all men need, but why do women have to be so much more…you know…prissy about it?" He asked as he leaned back on a countertop.  
"Would you rather be seen with a beautiful woman or some girl that just showered and pulled on some fresh clothes?" he asked.  
"Touché." Spike grinned. Just then, the bedroom door opened. Spike and Jet turned to see her. As they laid their eyes on her, both their jaws hit the floor. There she stood in the tight black dress and the stilettos looking like a goddess. Her hair twisted up in the back with the two curls on either side of her face, her makeup done perfectly to make her look even more beautiful, if possible, and the black mesh shoulder wrap draping down from her elbows. Her fingernails were painted a gun metal black and she held a necklace in her hands.   
"Spike?" she asked softly. He broke from the trance.  
"Y-yea?" he stammered, shocked at how beautiful she looked. She started walking over to him and he walked towards her.   
"Can you put this on for me? I can't do it with my nails this long." She said as she handed him the silver chain that had black stones hanging from it and turned to face away from him, showing him the back of the dress. He couldn't believe what he was seeing; she was so incredibly beautiful to begin with and now that she was dressed up, it was like heaven on Earth…well, Mars. He took each end in either of his hands and brought it around her neck to fasten them together. He moved in close to see how to connect the tiny clasp, and was greeted with the sweet scent of roses. Damn, why did she have to look this good and then have to leave? He knew she was wearing makeup and he didn't want to mess it up, so he couldn't kiss her before she left…or could he? He leaned his head in and nuzzled her neck and then kissed her softly along her jaw line as he wrapped his arms around her. She tilted her head forward and away, showing that she was enjoying the moment.  
"Dress for me like this sometime." He whispered into her ear as he took a quick nip at it. She couldn't help but smile.  
"If you take me out to dinner at a restaurant that requires dressing up, I have no problem with dressing like this." She said placing her arms over his. 


	28. Spike's Surprise

He rocked her back and forth and hummed into her ear the song that Julia was singing when he met her for the first time. Jet was happy for the both of them as he sat and watched. He glanced up at the clock and realized it was just about seven.  
"Alex, it's seven o' clock. Your ride's probably here." he said as he interrupted the happy couple. She pried Spike's arms off of her and then turned to look at him.  
"Time for me to go." She said as she kissed him lovingly on the lips. His eyes were glazed over in ecstasy as the steady sweet scent of roses wafted off of her.  
"I'll walk you to the ride." He said as she turned to walk away but he wrapped his arm around her waist and walked in time with her. She rested her head on his shoulder as they went out into the hall.  
"Alex!" Jet called. She looked over at him. "Be careful, please." He sighed with a smile.  
"I will Jet, don't worry about me." she said reassuringly. Spike continued to escort her out to the door of the ship. Her heels clicked on the metal floor in sync with his heavy footsteps.   
"I can't believe how beautiful you look tonight." He said happily.  
"As opposed to…" she asked suspiciously.   
"Oh, no, you're beautiful all the time hun, but tonight you're just…wow." He said as they reached the door. it opened and they stepped out.  
"Oh, I…" she trailed off as she caught sight of the black stretch limo at the end of the docks, parked with two chauffeurs waiting by the door. There were two flags at the front of the limo, hung on thin poles. They were black and red, but Alex couldn't make out the design. Spike stopped dead.  
"Alex, be careful tonight." He said as he let her go, not going any further. She looked at him.  
"I will. I love you, Spike." She said kissing his lips quickly.  
"And I love you too." He said as he started walking backwards. Why was he acting like this? She watched as he kept his eye on the limo and then went back into the ship. With a shrug of her shoulders, Alex walked towards the elegant black automobile. The two men bowed as she approached. One was slightly taller than the other and they seemed to have the same build. The one on her left had medium length blond hair that was cut evenly just above his ears. On her right, the man had long curly black hair that he had tied back in a ponytail. They both wore sunglasses and the same coat Blade was wearing when she spoke with him this afternoon.  
"Good evening miss, we were sent by Blade to pick you up and escort you to dinner." The blond one said with a slight smile. The black haired man opened the door and motioned for her to get in.  
"Oh, well thank you." She said as she stepped towards the open door. The blond haired man extended his hand to help her in. With a moment of thought, she took it and slid into the limousine. The interior was all leather and wood and lighted with a mini bar, television, and phone. She moved in further and sat in the middle of the seat. She heard the men chuckling briefly from outside before they climbed in themselves and took the seat across from her. They closed the door behind them and the car started to move. Alex was amazed with the extravagance of the car. What did Blade get involved in to have this kind of money? "Um, excuse me, but who are you and what's with the limo?" she asked as she tried to get the attention of the two escorts.  
"My name is Asriel and my partner here is Horace. We are Blade's two best men." The blond said as he removed his sunglasses. Green eyes shone back as Horace removed his.   
"Yes, he entrusts us with everything. This limousine is his personal and private transport for short distances and used by him and him alone. You must be very close to him for him to send this to pick you up." he said with a grin.  
"Even Blade's top clients never ride in this car." Asriel informed. Clients? Best men? What kind of business was he in anyway?  
"What does Blade do? He never told me exactly what type of business he was involved in." she said expressing confusion and a hint of fear. She was going into this situation blind. The both of them chuckled simultaneously. "What?"  
"Lady, you are in for a surprise." Asriel grinned.  
  
Back at the ship, Spike had gotten back in and closed the door behind him and was on his way back to the living area, racking his brain with how's and why's. Jet had to know. After all, Spike remembered how he wouldn't tell him everything about Blade. What was the deal with the Red Dragon insignias on the flags of the limo and the Red Dragon members waiting with it? Spike's step quickened as he entered the living area and headed straight for the kitchen where Jet had already begun to eat. He walked in and sat at the table, in front of a dish of Jet's bell peppers and beef.  
"Did you see her off?" he asked as he ate another forkful.   
"Not really." He grumbled. Jet picked up Spike's uneasy anger. He shoved another forkful into his mouth anyway.  
"What do you mean by not really?" he asked trying to be careful of his tone. Spike sighed irritably as he stabbed a piece of meat with his fork.  
"Well, let's just say that if I would've walked up to the huge black limousine with the two chauffeurs, I would probably have been shot and killed." He muttered. He played with his food on the dish.  
"Now why would something like that happen?" Jet chuckled. Spike was fed up with this. He slammed both of his clenched fists on the table and produced a thunderous bang.  
"Because not only were the two chauffeurs wearing Red Dragon coats, THE FLAGS ON THE LIMO BORE THE RED DRAGON INSIGNIA!!!" he screamed as he shot to his feet. Jet dropped his fork from his hand and it clattered to the table that now had a thin crack running through it from Spike slamming his fists on it. "Now tell me Jet, WHY IS THE LOVE OF MY LIFE RIDING OFF IN A RED DRAGON LIMOUSINE?"  
"I…I can't tell you. You'll take off and do something stupid!" Jet shot back as he stood and took his dish and fork to the sink, tossing it in to be washed later. When he turned around, he was greeted with Spike's gun barrel against his forehead, right between his eyes. He looked emotionless as he held the gun steadily to his face. Like a true killer, he showed no emotion when threatening someone's life, but Jet knew he was angry.  
"Jet, so help me god if you don't start talking…" Spike trailed off through gritted teeth.  
"I won't tell you Spike." He said. Spike pushed the gun further into his forehead, forcing Jet to bend backwards into the sink.  
"Don't start with me Jet," he said as he cocked the gun, "you know I'll do it."  
"No, I promised her I wouldn't tell you." He said angrily. Spike pulled the gun off his forehead and pointed at his foot as he pulled the trigger. The bullet missed him by a fraction of an inch.  
"Jet, her safety is in jeopardy and I don't want to bury her anytime soon." He said as he cocked the gun again and pressed it to Jet's forehead yet again. With a moment of thought, Jet thought about the situation.  
"Fine! But it's only because I don't want to see her hurt either!" he said pushing the gun off of his forehead and crossing his arms. "You're going to want to sit down for this, believe me." Spike grabbed a chair and whipped it around. He took a seat and looked up at Jet, still angry for having to threaten his life to get information.  
"Spit it out Jet." He urged as he lit up a cigarette. He took a deep breath and spoke.  
"Spike, Alex's friend Blade is really Vicious' son." Spike's face turned white and the cigarette fell to the floor, he could feel his heart skipping beats. 


	29. Does Determination Win Out?

"Don't fuck with me Jet, Vicious didn't have a son." He insisted after a period of silence. Jet shook his head.  
"Do you ever remember him talking about a woman with the last name McGowan?" Spike sat and thought a moment.  
"Once, but he didn't want to talk about her." he said trying to remember.  
"That was Blade's mother. My guess is that she was Vicious' girlfriend at some point and she got knocked up when they were young. He left her but kept in touch until you killed him. Apparently, He met Alex when they were kids and then lost touch after her parents were killed. The day after I met her, we went out to breakfast and she ran into him. I got this really bad feeling in the pit of my stomach when I saw him, but it wasn't until after he said he got a letter from his father that I realized who he was. That day after we went and visited the track, they met up and I decided to leave them alone to catch up. He was a nice boy and I didn't expect anything, so I figured she'd be all right. Later that night, she came back with him, asking me to tell him about his father. After I told him about how you hand Vicious killed each other and some of the story behind it, he told me how he told Alex how he felt about her. He had told her that he had liked her since they were kids and he wanted to experience his love with her as man and wife. She lost it and confined herself to her room for the rest of the night." Jet said as he recalled what happened. Spike sat and listened to every word.  
"But, how does it tie to the Red Dragon?" Spike asked himself aloud.  
"Blade is Vicious' son. When he killed the elders, he took over to head the syndicate. The only time there can be any succession is through family or to the one who dares to kill the current leader or leaders. You killed Vicious, but Vicious also killed you. Therefore, either you or Blade should be the one to take the syndicate over. Since you were believed to be dead, they went through his supposedly destroyed records and found that he in fact had a son. Before they contacted him, he came to me and asked me about it and I told him that if there was no leader to the syndicate, they'd come looking for him and if he chose not to take the position, they'd kill him. If there was a leader, the leader would come after him and kill him fearing that he might claim the organization for himself." Jet said.  
"And the brilliant deduction would be that the top men in the Red Dragon came to him and bargained with him. He's probably the head of the syndicate if that's the way the politics work inside the Red Dragon." Spike said out loud. Jet nodded.  
"Which would leave Alex in a lot of potential danger."  
"DAMN!" Spike shouted as he launched himself out of the chair and ran for his old bedroom.  
"SPIKE! What are you doing?" Jet yelled. A few moments later, Spike came out with three different guns and a large box of ammo.  
"Saving my damsel in distress." He said as he began to load them all. Jet shook his head.  
"Don't you think it would be a better idea to go and steak out the situation first before jumping to the conclusion that she's in trouble?"  
"And how do you propose I do that?" he asked mater-of-factly as he finished loading one gun.  
"Be your cunning self. Use your art of disguise to get into the restaurant and sit close enough not to be noticed yet see and hear what's going on." Jet said reasoning with him. Spike thought a moment before he pocketed his loaded gun and took the other two back to his room. A few minutes later, he came back out wearing a black suit.   
"Well?"  
"Looks good, but what about your hair?" Jet asked referring to the puffy mass on his head. Spike ran his fingers through the fluff and thought. Alex had one of those hair straighters in their room; maybe he could straighten it out. He ran in and searched for it, plugged it in and let it heat up. He remembered using a crimping plate and helping Alex do her hair; he could use the flat plate to straighten his and then do something with it. After it was hot, he picked it up and slowly began to pull it through the hot plates, occasionally singing his scalp slightly when he wasn't paying attention. It took him about 10 minutes to get his entire head done, but he looked so different. The curly brown amateur afro had been straightened into shiny, coffee colored hair that reached down to just past his shoulders. He had it parted in the middle and wondered if it was a good idea to leave it like that. He looked around and saw a black hair band he could use to hold his hair in a ponytail. With one of her brushes, he pulled it back and tied it. It looked alright to him with the black suit; but it was time to get going.   
"So what do ya think?" he asked as he ran his hand along the top of his head. Jet looked wide-eyed at him.  
"Well I'll be. Spike, you clean up well!" he said scratching his head in confusion and amazement.   
"I like it, can you tell I'm the same person?" spike asked as he stuck his hands in his pockets and sort of posing. Jet chuckled.  
"Go get the girl. She probably went to the Blue Moon Gala on the other side of the raceway. If you hurry, you could get there before them; there's a lot of traffic over that way this time of the night." He said shaking his head and tossing Spike the key to the Swordfish. He grabbed it and ran for his ship, hoping he could get there before Alex did. He was off in no time, flying towards the restaurant through a crystal clear sky.   
  
Still being driven to the restaurant, Alex couldn't help but notice that both Asriel and Horace's eyes kept wandering in her direction. They weren't saying anything, just grinning slightly and glancing at each other. She didn't feel safe traveling with them; there was something scary about them that she couldn't quite put her finger on. Nervously she turned and looked out the window at the passing scenery of the city streets. The people were finely dressed with the exception of the occasional bum or hobo that dotted the corners. They came to a stop and the light turned on inside the limo.  
"Miss Alex, we will be arriving at the restaurant soon. We would like you to…" Asriel chuckled as he trailed off. "We would like to search you to be sure you aren't carrying any weapons." Horace joined in with the laughing.  
"And seeing that you're wearing a long dress, we ask that you let us search between your legs to make sure nothing is hidden between them."   
"You're kidding me! I've been sitting with my legs crossed the entire time! If I had anything, you would've seen it!" she asked shying back into the seat.   
"Boys, that's the last time you pull that trick." A voice on intercom said. The shield between the driver and the passenger area dropped and a female driver turned around to scold them.  
"Aww, come on Joyce. We were just having a little fun with the girl!" Asriel whined. She was a little older than Alex, 30 perhaps.  
"Miss, if they try anything, you just let me know and I'll have them reprimanded as soon as I get in contact with master Blade." She said with a smile. Her black hair was about medium length and was put up under the hat she wore.  
"Um, okay. Thank you." Alex said nervously as the shield went back up and the light turned off. Both Asriel and Horace sat with their arms crossed and seemed to be pouting like children.  
"She always ruins our fun." Horace grumbled as he put his glasses back on.  
"Well what do you expect? She's his driver and practically his best friend. He tells her everything, even stuff we don't know about!" Asriel whined.  
"How do you know?"  
"She slipped something about how he was planning tonight. She told me not to tell and I swore to secrecy." He answered. The two of them acted like little boys now, bickering and arguing. Suddenly, the limo stopped and was shifted into neutral. Horace got up and opened the door with Asriel behind him before both men each reached their hands in to take Alex's. She set both of her feet on the ground and took both their hands, raising herself to stand. Instantly she was standing on a red carpet that led to the double doors of the restaurant, about 25 feet away. The carpet was roped off and was lined with photographers and news reporters. Cameras flashed and people called out to her, but both Asriel and Horace escorted her into the restaurant. As she was led to the door, she could've swore she heard the Swordfish fly overhead, but maybe it was just all the noise confusing her. 


	30. Rumours

Holding on to both Horace's and Asriel's arms, she was led through the doors and into the restaurant. There was a quiet and constant murmur of conversation hovering in the air, but it seemed slightly quieter as she walked through the door. The lights were dim and candles light each table. She stopped just inside the door to look around at the extravagance of the place. The white and burgundy tablecloths gave the restaurant a romantic kind of feel, as did the candles and the roses in the center of each table. She wasn't able to look around very much before being pulled along by her two escorts who seemed in a hurry. She was led past the bar and across the far end of the dance floor to a small private room. It was like a booth, except there were walls surrounding it. There were two men guarding the entrance to the secluded table and continued to do so as the two escorts came right up to them.  
"Who is this?" one of the light brown haired men asked Horace.   
"This is Blade's guest. She'll be dining with him this evening." Asriel cut in before Horace could say a word. The other man with the light brown hair nodded and stepped aside at the same time the man who asked about Alex did and revealed that the tiny room held a large and extravagant table with a silver three tiered candelabra surrounded with a few red roses. The tablecloths were the same, and the chairs looked extremely comfortable. Blade wasn't in the room, and Alex wondered where he was. She didn't want to sit here and wait for him longer than she had to.  
"Please have a seat miss, Mr. McGowan should be returning shortly. There was some business he had to attend to. It came up rather suddenly." One of the brown haired men said with a cracked smile. She slowly wandered to a seat and sat down. It was right next to another, which was probably where Blade was going to sit. As soon as she was in her chair, the two men stepped away from the doorway and a red mesh curtain veiled the doorway. The glitter caught the light from the candles and sparkled like tiny stars. She waited and watched through the transparent curtain as people exited and entered the restaurant. The view of the bar was wonderful. It was entirely glass and frosted in different designs and had been lighted in different areas. She was analyzing one particular design when a tall man with long, straight, dark brown hair that had been pulled into a ponytail sat right in front of it. She saw him look over into the room where she sat, but she looked away when he noticed her. It was bad enough she was meeting Blade for dinner, what would Spike say if she wound up bringing home another man? So she sat and waited, hoping to get this night over and done with as soon as possible.  
  
Spike parked the Swordfish on the roof and used the fire escapes to climb down to the ground. He moved quickly, knowing he didn't have much time and didn't want to miss anything that happened between Alex and Blade; he wanted to make sure she would stay safe. as he reached the ground, he walked around to the door and entered the building. He was amazed with the interior and the hostess asked him where he wanted to sit.  
"A place at the bar for one would be just fine." He said with a smile. The hostess nodded and led him over, letting him sit on a chair near the end of the bar. She handed him a menu and walked away. He picked it up and read through it and selected something before folding it back up and setting it down. Where was she? Spike scanned the restaurant looking for her. It was when he caught sight of a beautiful young woman inside a small room, closed off with a curtain of red transparent material he realized that she was going out of the frying pan and into the fire on this one. Behind that curtain, she looked like a beautiful untouchable doll that was watching over all that was in the restaurant. He realized she was looking at him and he smiled. She quickly looked away, but all he could do was smile at the gorgeous young girl. A bartender took his order and got him a drink.  
"Eh, you checkin' out that fine little number up there?" the bartender asked him.   
"Yeah, she's a cute one don't ya think?" Spike asked with a smile. The bartender let out a slight chuckle as he poured Spike's drink.  
"Good luck pal, she's here with a big time business man, if that's what you want to call him."  
"What do you mean?" Spike asked. He already knew she was here with Blade.  
"Well, she's the guest of Blade McGowan, the head of the Red Dragon Crime Syndicate. A hell of a business if you ask me." he said sliding the drink to Spike.   
"Head of the Red Dragon eh? I don't see him in there anywhere."  
"He left only a few minutes before she got here. He got a call and had to take care of something if you catch my drift."  
"Really now."  
"Yep, and from what I hear of that little fox up there, she's an old friend of his and his romantic interest. Rumor has it, he wants her to be his wife." Spike almost sprayed his drink all over the bar. His heart skipped several beats as he swallowed the drink.  
"No way! Not that girl and not to that Blade guy!" he said questioning the bartender. The bartender only nodded.  
"Yep. No one knows who she is, what she does, or where she's been all these years, but that's what I hear from someone who works for the Red Dragon. She comes in here drinking a lot and winds up getting drunk enough to start spilling all sorts of things."  
"Well now, ain't that a bitch." Spike said as he returned to his drink and glanced over at his beautiful girl.   
"What's your name buddy?" the bartender asked.  
"Lee. You?"  
"Ricardo. Nice to meet you Lee." Both of them went about their own business; Spike stared at Alex, amazed with her beauty, and Ricardo served his customers. Alex kept glancing at him nervously but all Spike could do was chuckle to himself.  
"Ricardo."  
"Yeo?"  
"Pour the girl a hard lemonade for me. Send it over to her right away." Spike said as he kept his eyes on her with a smile.  
"Alright, but I'm warning you now. If you get shit for it, it isn't my fault, got it?" Spike nodded. Ricardo poured a glass and went over himself to give it to her. The two men guarding the door questioned him, but let him pass after one of them took a tiny sip. He seemed to be talking to her for a moment and then gave her the drink. At first, she didn't take it, but then she did as she found out who it was from. She waved to Spike, still having no idea it was him, and sipped the drink. As Ricardo returned, she called him back. She handed him the drink and he came back to the bar with it.  
"Well?" Spike asked.  
"She wasn't sure at first, but then she took it. I was coming back and she gave it to me and told me she wasn't thirsty. But she did say thank you anyway."  
"Eh, it was worth a try." He said as he returned to his drink. Just then the sound of screaming could be heard from outside as the doors were opened everyone in the restaurant looked up to see the tall and silver haired Blade McGowan walk through the door with a bouquet of two dozen roses at his side in his left hand. He stood there surveying the entire restaurant for a moment, but then walked swiftly towards the tiny room where he saw Alex waiting. As he walked, his hair was brushed out of his face with the force of him walking, as was his Red Dragon coat. A chill went down Spike's back as Blade walked by, and a sick feeling began churning in his stomach. Alex was in for something big and Spike wished he could warn her without being found out. 


	31. All Hell Breaks Loose

Blade stopped outside the doorway, so that he wouldn't be seen. He seemed to be talking with two of his men. One of them sprayed something in his mouth and the other held a mirror in front of him so that he could look all right before he went in to dine with Alex. With a quick adjustment of his black Red Dragon coat, he cracked his neck to each side and then walked into the tiny room.  
Alex sat there still waiting, but growing somewhat impatient. She didn't want to sit here all night and after that guy at the bar sent her that drink, she didn't know what to do. He was kind of good looking, but Spike was cuter. She sat waiting a little longer until she heard noises from outside. She didn't pay much mind, but with some mumbling outside of the room, she became slightly nervous. She shifted in her seat and then took a deep breath. She heard a crinkling sound from the doorway and then the curtain was pulled aside to allow Blade to enter. His appearance somewhat shocked her, he was thin and looked so tired. As soon as he had entered, she quickly stood with her hands clasped together nervously.  
"Alex my dear, how've you been?" he asked with a sickening smile. What was wrong? His smile usually brightened up her day instead of making her uneasy.  
"Blade, it's good to see you. You look wonderful." She said forcing a smile but keeping a formal tone as he did for her. He could only smile.  
"Ah, not as wonderful as you. You look absolutely magnificent." He said as he took her hands. With a nervous gulp, she forced another smile. His hands were ice cold, it sent shivers racing down her spine. "Don't be so formal my dear, we're only dining in a formal atmosphere. We're still old friends as always!" Blade was right, so his appearance had changed, big deal! He was probably still the same old playful Blade McGowan she grew up with.   
"I'm sorry, it just feels so businesslike. What took you so long anyway?" she asked. One of the men outside the door cleared his throat loudly as Blade shut his eyes to think for a moment.  
"I had some…err, business to attend to that couldn't wait." he said smiling once again. He led her back to her seat and had her sit back down. "Please have a seat. These are for you." He said as he handed her the bouquet.   
"Blade, this is very sweet, thank you!" she said as she inhaled their sweet scent deeply. Blade walked around the table and sat beside her. With a simple snap of Blade's fingers, one of his men entered and stood at attention.  
"Grim, take Miss Bondora's roses and place them in a vase for her." he said. The man walked up to the table and took the roses as Alex handed them to him. He disappeared through the doorway, leaving the two alone once again. "So Alex, how is your career going? Any new songs that are possibly making their way towards stardom for you?" he asked as he rested his right cheek on his right fist and looking at her. There was something attractive about him when he looked like this.  
"Not many, I've written them, they just need to be set to music. It has to be one of the hardest parts of the business." She said folding her hands neatly in her lap and then looking at him with a smile. The curtain was opened again and Grim entered the room again. As he placed the vase on the table, Blade looked up at him.  
"Grim, please do me the favor of taking all the escorts back to our building. I wish to dine privately with Miss Bondora." He said.  
"But sir, what if..." he began protesting his request.  
"Grim, do as I say or there will be consequences. Just be sure that Joyce remains outside with the limousine incase we need it." Blade ordered coldly with an angry glisten in his eye. The man sighed and left the room. Alex watched as five men slowly walked towards the door of the restaurant. They hesitated to leave, but eventually did.  
"What was that all about?" Alex asked confused as to what was going on.  
"Nothing, just some…internal political issues is all my dear." He said with a relaxing sigh.  
"Um, okay." She said. She knew something was up, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. A waitress entered the room and gave each of them a menu.  
"Would you like to start off with drinks?" she asked looking to Alex first. She was about to order a glass of water but Blade cut in before her.  
"We'll have your finest bottle of wine please." He requested. She nodded and scribbled on her palm-sized computer. Alex looked to Blade who was smiling at her.  
"I'll be back with your drinks and to take your order." She said as she walked away.   
"The finest wine? Blade, you don't have to…"  
"Nonsense, you're worth it. You deserve the finer things in life." He said wrapping his hand around her chin with a grin. She couldn't help but smile at the way he pampered her with fancy restaurants and the best wine. Why was he doing this though? Taking her to such a high-class place for a dinner that he could have at any other restaurant?  
"Blade?"  
"Yes?"  
"Why did you bring me here?" she asked. He looked at her like she was an idiot or something.  
"What do you mean? Can't I have dinner with you at a nice restaurant?" he said with a slight giggle in his voice.  
"Blade, this isn't just a nice restaurant, this is a very expensive, high-class restaurant. You know me better than to have me dress up and go out to a place like this." He shook his head.  
"Listen, all I know is I'm trying to be nice and take you out to dinner before I probably never see you again. Can't I even do that without you getting suspicious?" he asked her. She felt bad now. He was only trying to be nice and she was just jumping down his throat.  
"I'm sorry Blade, this just isn't like you at all. I'm used to little diners and restaurants that could care less if you were wearing nothing but jeans and a t-shirt." She said feeling ashamed.  
"No, you have every right. A lot has happened to me in the past few months and it's even hard for me to believe sometimes. I can understand where you're coming from because I felt the same way when I was approached with the opportunity to lead this syndicate."   
"Syndicate?! Blade, don't tell me you…" Alex said frantically and wide-eyed looking directly at him. His eyes had wandered to the table since they couldn't reach the ground. His silver hair shrouded his face, but she could tell he was disappointed in himself for not only slipping, but also bringing her into his problems.  
"Alex, they came to me and I didn't want to give up something I didn't know a whole lot about, so I did it. When they gave me the only thing they had of my father's, I couldn't say no." he said. Her head was racing with thoughts. What was going to happen to him now? What did Blade get that belonged to Vicious? How did the Red Dragon find him? Despite the loud talking from the rest of the restaurant, she heard something drop onto the table. She looked over to see Blade shedding tears.  
"Blade, what's wrong? I'm not mad at you or anything hun, don't cry." She said wrapping her arm around his shoulder.  
"No, I just didn't want to drag you into this, but I had to. Alex, we've known each other since we were kids and you are the closest friend I've ever known. It's so hard to keep up this guise of a cold-blooded killer. The only thing that keeps me from going insane is the thought of you being happy. I go to sleep at night and see the people that I've killed but they all disappear when I see you holding me. I miss seeing you every day and hearing from you as often as I used to when we were kids." He said as he dried his eyes and took her hand. His cold eyes looked up at her, still glistening with tears. With his free hand, he removed a buckle and placed a large katana on the table, sheathed in a black scabbard. "This belonged to my father and it was the only thing of him that anyone could find. They didn't even find his body." He said as he ran his fingers over the smooth finish. Alex could feel the tears welling up in her eyes now. She couldn't stand to see Blade this way.  
"Blade, I'm sorry." She said as she threw her arms around him and held him tight.  
"It's alright, I should've said no and refused to go with them." he whispered into her ear. He softly kissed her neck below her ear and nuzzled into her. She wasn't sure what was happening, but suddenly she felt the same love for him. A voice in her head was telling her to be with him, but another was telling her to remember Spike. It wasn't lust; it was love talking to her. She knew because she felt the same way about Spike. She was so confused about what her head was telling her, fighting between Spike and Blade was giving her a headache. "Alex, I love you. I know I've told you before and I know you probably don't feel the same, but I've really needed to tell you. It's been eating at me inside for so long until I was able to just come out and say it now."  
"Blade, I… I…" she stuttered. She could feel her face flushing bright red and her heart beat faster as she pulled away from him and looked into his eyes. Were steel blue, but she could see his soul in them. He put his index finger to her lips.  
"Shhh." He said smiling weakly. He brought his hand to her face and placed her cheek in his palm. His fingers wrapped around to the back of her neck he pulled his finger away and pulled her close with his other hand. Knowing the potential consequences, his lips touched hers and he kissed her softly. As he began to pull back, he forced herself to lean towards him and she kissed him back. Knowing that their feelings were mutual, they kissed each other and gradually deepened into one another. Despite the loud crash from the bar, they continued to kiss as the man that sent Alex the drink stood, dusted himself off, and told the bartender to pour him the strongest he had. 


	32. A Dinner To Remember

"What's the deal, Lee?" Ricardo asked as he grabbed a large shot glass and began to pour a large amount of liquor into it.  
"I…I just witnessed the most heart wrenching thing in my life." Spike said as he just took the bottle from his bartending friend. He tipped it up and chugged it for 15 seconds straight.  
"Easy there. What did you see?" Ricardo asked finally pulling the bottle away from his lips. Spike only glanced up into the room where Alex and Blade sat. They had just finished their kiss and a waitress was walking in with a bucket of ice, followed by another waiter with two bottles of wine.   
"Them, he just took her from me." he said as Blade nodded with his arm still around Alex and the waiter placed one of the bottles in the bucket of ice to chill.  
"Don't worry, there are plenty of fish in the sea. You'll have your catch in no time Lee. A handsome guy like you with a personality like that, no time at all, pal." Ricardo took back the bottle Spike was drinking from and found that he had drained it totally.   
"None like her Ricardo. I know her and we dated. I don't know about the two of us anymore." He said as he pulled the black hair tie out of his hair and let it fall wildly about his shoulders. It wasn't restrained, so it began to puff out a little bit.   
  
After the waitress left to get glasses and left the bottle in the bucket to chill, there was an eerie silence. They didn't make eye contact, but Blade kept his arm wrapped around the top of her chair. They sat in the deafening and awkward quiet.   
"Alex." Blade eventually said. She looked to him. His eyes were on the floor, but they looked up to meet hers. "I…I have to meet this law inside the syndicate, its like a uh…a requirement if you're involved with someone."  
"What are you getting at Blade?" she asked slowly, not knowing if she wanted to know. Blade looked at her and his eyes grew sad.  
"Nothing, nothing at all. Nothing that you need to worry about." He said smiling. He was hiding something, she could tell. It was just like he was able to tell when something was bothering her. "Let's just have a fun and eventful evening." Their waitress came back with the glasses and set them in front of them.  
"Are you ready to order your meals?" she asked politely as she picked up her PDA out of her pocket and waited with the tip of the stylus on the screen.   
"I would like the roast chicken with the vegetable assortment." Blade said politely and with a grin.   
"And I'd like to have the filet mignon with the steamed sugar snap peas and the oven baked potatoes please." Alex said as she handed her menu to the girl.  
"And how would you like your meat cooked?"  
"Medium well please." There was a short pause as she wrote the order down on the device.  
"Okay, your meals should be out in roughly 15-20 minutes, would you like soup or salad while you wait?"  
"No thank you." Blade said with a grin. The waitress then left, leaving Blade and Alex alone yet again. There was another eerie silence again for a few moments before Alex spoke again.  
"Blade, how long have you cared for me like this?" she asked as she leaned back into her chair feeling more comfortable than when she fist came into the restaurant. He looked at her like she was crazy.  
"I've always cared for you."  
"No, when I say care for me like this, I mean like, hell, maybe even love me. How long Blade?" he was quiet for a few seconds.  
"Alex, do you remember back when we were walking back to your friend's ship a few months back and you told me you were a bounty hunter?" she nodded. "Well, that was the day I consciously acknowledged that I liked and maybe even loved you. Subconsciously I guess it started back just after you left the track when we were kids the last time your dad raced before they were killed. I remember asking my mom time after time about seeing you again but being told that I couldn't because you were far, far away and there was no way I could get to you. I used to write letters and then give them to mom for her to send out, but I'd never get anything back. I guess that was what did it. Growing up missing you like I did."  
"Blade, I…" she began before she didn't know what to say. He only looked at her. "I did the exact same thing."  
"What do you mean?"  
"When I lived at the orphanage, I wrote letters too, but the lady that ran the place would either crumple them up and toss them in the trash in front of me, or she'd just say she couldn't send it out. It depended on how drunk she was and how lazy." She said recalling her days living in the unhappy hellhole.  
"So you felt the same for me?" he asked her. She saw him getting his hopes up. Her eyes went to the floor; somewhere other than where she could see his.  
"I did. But after so many times of witnessing my letter being rejected, I lost hope and faith. Just enough to dampen my spirits to think I'd never be able to see you again, and I believed it. After I turned 16, I got tired of it and just flat out left. One night after the lights had been turned out, I picked up all of my stuff and snuck out. They came looking for me, but I was already far enough gone, they couldn't catch up. I lived on the streets until the day we saw each other again after the countless years that passed. So much had happened to me in that period of time, you wouldn't even think me to be the same person after I'd tell you all of it." She said keeping her eyes away from him.  
"But Alex," he said as he pulled her face to look him dead in the eyes, "I want to know everything about you. Of all the times I've told you, I don't think you understand what I'm saying. I'm telling you that I love you and I want to be with you." He said with a smile, trying to coax one out of her; he only received tears.  
"I…I can't. It's not you, it's just that…" she said as she pulled her eyes off of his and turned her entire body to face away from him as her tears flowed from her eyes.  
"You can tell me. I care about you Alex. You are my best friend, which is why I want to be with you so much." He said as he placed his hand on her shoulder. He kissed her lightly on the soft skin that was between her neck and shoulder. The light scent of roses hung in the air around her and made him desire her even more. A sudden movement from outside the room caught his eye, and as he looked over to the bar, Blade could see another man with long hair staring in at Alex, his Alex.   
"I just don't know anymore. It's like my life was coming together but now it's all just falling apart again. So much at once makes me wonder if I can keep my sanity anymore." She said as she placed her hand over his, but then pushed it off of her shoulder. What was she doing?  
"What's wrong? What are you trying to say?" he asked as she turned to look at him. His eyes were full of confusion and worry. She couldn't just reject him here, like this. After tonight, she'd tell him about her and Spike and how they are so into each other.   
"Nothing," she smiled as she pushed her emotions back, "I'm just babbling again is all." He still looked concerned, but why? He knew she was hiding something, and she could tell he knew there was something going on.   
"If you say so," he said with a sigh. He knew she wasn't going to tell him without him having to drag it out of her, but this wasn't the time or place for that. "So tell me, how is it going aboard the Bebop with your friend?" Finally! Something she could talk about!  
"Well, Jet and I have been doing pretty well. Bringing in a lot of money and buying tons of musical equipment. I taught him to play the harmonica and the piano, and I play the guitar, piano, and the saxophone now. We make a pretty decent band. There's another girl that hangs around with us that plays the drums and she's a good drummer, so look forward to hearing about me being famous soon." She said with a smile. At least something was going well for her.  
"That's good to hear. Maybe I can be in one of your music videos eventually?" he asked as he touched the tip of her nose with his index finger lightly.   
"So, what about you? Did you completely give up modeling?" she asked as she reached up and flicked a strand of hair out of his face.  
"Not totally. I enjoy doing it, so every now and then I get a call from some magazine about doing a shoot I go out and do it. I actually have one just after dinner if you'd like to tag along." He said hinting to her that he wanted her to go. She grinned.  
"I don't know. I'd have to tell Jet about it and let him know that I won't be home until later."  
"You might not go home at all." He said as a playful smirk crossed his face. She giggled uneasily knowing that either he was just trying to be funny or he was actually going to keep her with him.  
"I think I will go home tonight, we lift off first thing in the morning to head out to Venus. The guy we're after moves around a lot and we've finally found him on Venus, but we don't know how long he'll be there so we have to leave right away. We were planning on leaving today, but then you called and sort of switched everything." She said lying to him. She wasn't comfortable with the way he said that. He shrugged his shoulders.  
"How much was he worth?"  
"I think about 18 million."  
"If you stay with me tonight, I'll pay you 20." He said with a sly and sneaky tone of voice. She couldn't believe he just said that!  
"Blade, I'm not some escort you can just hire and waltz around town with." She said becoming annoyed. He quickly picked it up.  
"God, what was I thinking? I'm sorry, but it's just that I haven't been able to get together with you in so long and I just want to spend some time with you. I realize bounty hunting is what you do to get money and get by, but I want to be with you for one night before we don't see each other again for god only knows how long." He said apologizing for his rudeness. She looked at him slyly for a moment.   
"Let me go and call Jet, I'll let you know what he says." She said standing up and preparing to leave the room. He nodded as she passed through the curtain and began to cross the restaurant. He watched her go across the dance floor and towards the bar, but then busied himself with buckling his sword back around his waist and then having some of his wine. 


	33. A Romantic Ride Home

She reached the edge of the bar and walked past the man who bought her the drink. She knew he was watching her, but she paid him no mind. She continued to walk, but she heard the sound of a chair moving out and footsteps following behind her. She turned right at the other end of the bar to head to the coatroom and by now she was out of Blade's view. She continued to walk with a quickening pace until she arrived in the unattended coatroom.  
"You know, you should at least talk to the person who buys you a drink," a voice from behind her said. She whirled to see two brown eyes, one a little darker than the other, smiling down at her. "You just might know the guy!"  
"Spike?!" she asked in surprise. He smiled at her.  
"You know, I like that hair straightener you have. It works really well."  
"What are you doing here!" she scolded. His expression changed from playful to serious in a flash.  
"Why don't you tell me why you're necking with your buddy? Do I mean that much to you?"   
"Touché." She said somewhat disappointed in herself.   
"Alex, I came to protect you. One wrong move, and you're as good as dead!" he warned her somewhat angry with her.  
"What are you talking about? Blade wouldn't do anything to hurt me."  
"No, Blade won't, but the Red Dragon will. Did he say anything to you about some sort of internal politics regarding someone that a member is involved with of the other sex?" She thought back through their conversation.  
"Yea, he mentioned it but then quickly dismissed it. Why?" She asked after a few seconds of silence. Spike took a deep breath and let it out with a whoosh.  
"Inside the syndicate, there's a law stating that if any member is involved with a person of the opposite sex, they must marry and live together all the time, or…" he trailed off. Alex was left hanging.  
"Or what? Come on Spike." She said growing impatient.   
"Or the person the member is involved with must be killed. They don't want anyone sneaking off with all the internal secrets of the syndicate even if they aren't that sure of what's going on." he said quickly and painfully. It hurt him to say it, but it hurt her to hear it. It was quiet for a few moments as the ears welled up in her eyes and he didn't know what to say. "I put my life on the line to come here and tell you this. If anyone recognized me, they'd kill me right away. I left the syndicate once a few years ago by faking my own death, but after they found me, they hunted me down like an animal and tried to kill me. If they find out I cheated death again, they'll be even worse than the last time." He said as she wrapped her arms around him. He rested his chin on her head and sniffed her hair. It smelled lightly of roses, but the stench of hairspray almost drowned it out.  
"I came back here to use the phone to call Jet." She began. "Blade wants me to go with him to a photo shoot he has after dinner."  
"I'm going too. Where is it?" he asked hastily.  
"No, you can't. You just said they'd kill you if they found out you're still alive!" she yelled.  
"I don't care, I still love you. Even if you two were kissing like that and there was some sort of something between the both of you, I'd still die for you." The tears streamed down her face, smearing her makeup all over, but she pulled herself close to him as it rubbed off on his suit jacket. It was black, so it wasn't visible, which Spike didn't care either way.  
"Spike, I'm so sorry I did that. I don't know what I was thinking. Something just came over me and…" she began, but she was cut off when he pressed his lips to hers. She wasn't expecting it, which made it even more enjoyable on both parts. As it deepened, Spike pushed her back up against the inside wall of the coatroom to give a little privacy. Even if someone did walk in, they wouldn't be able to see them, unless they walked in a little bit and looked around. They were in that corner for about five minutes before Alex decided that was enough. "Blade's probably getting worried." She said as she caught her breath.  
"So let him." Spike said as he went to kiss her again. She stopped him abruptly.  
"Come with me. I'll get us out of here in one piece." She said with a smile as she took Spike's hand and pulled him along. She took him out of the coatroom and led him out into the restaurant. She let go of him and he followed her as she walked straight into the room where she was to dine with Blade. He was surprised with the fact she brought the man that was watching her, to talk to him.  
"Alex? What's going on? Who's this?" he asked as he stood up and looked somewhat annoyed. She walked around the table and hugged him.  
"I'm sorry sweetheart, but there's a huge emergency back on the ship, Jet needs me back right away." She said acting upset.  
"Well, let me give you a ride back. The limo is really quick about getting through the city."  
"That's not fast enough. This is a friend of ours; his name is…" she said as she was cut off.  
"Lee, Lee Spiegel." He said as he reached out and shook Blade's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. McGowan. You must be quite a wonderful man to have hooked Alex here." Blade smiled.  
"Yes, well. Alex take the limo, it's the least I can do." He urged.  
"It's not fast enough. Jet sent Lee over with a zip craft, it'll take us right over to the ship faster than the limo. I'm so, so sorry Blade. When are you going to leave? I'll meet up with you tomorrow if I can." She said hugging him again. "If you'd like, you can stop by later on. You have the number; you can call before you come. Not to mention, I was looking forward to that dinner. It sounded excellent."  
"Alex, I leave on Friday morning. I don't know about later on tonight, but we'll see, okay?" he said kissing her on her forehead. She nodded before kissing his lips softly. She could feel Spike mentally stabbing her as she did, but then the unexpected deep kiss from Blade had to have really gotten to him. As she stood there kissing Blade, Spike didn't utter a word. As Blade backed off, they smiled at each other and hugged one last time before Spike led Alex out of the room, across the restaurant, and out the door.  
"What the hell was that?!" he practically screamed as they walked around to the alley where they could climb the fire escape to the roof.  
"Acting. Jealous are we?" she taunted playfully as they walked further down the alley. He grabbed her and pushed her against the brick wall.  
"Like you wouldn't believe." He said as he pinned her up against the wall and crushed his lips onto hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck as his right hand held her head to him and his left wrapped around her back to hold her close. They stood and kissed for a good amount of time before they heard footsteps in the alley. They pulled apart from each other and quickly walked to the fire escape. He began to climb it first and she followed behind him, up the side of the four-storied building. He reached the top and he helped pull her over the edge onto the roof. The Swordfish was parked right in the middle of the roof, waiting for Spike and Alex to board. "Your chariot, my princess." He said as the cockpit opened.  
"It's like a sight for sore eyes." she said as he jumped up into the seat. He held out his hand to her and helped her climb in. he leaned forward and she sat behind him. She leaned forward onto his back as the glass over the cockpit shut and sealed and the engine started. She wrapped her arms around him as the Swordfish lifted into the air and began to fly off.   
"Hold on tighter." He said. She could see his smile reflecting in the glass.  
"Why, you aren't going that fast." She asked.  
"No, it just feels good." He said as he put his hand over hers that were clasped together and holding on to him. She put her head down on his back, as if ready to sleep as the ship flew towards the docks at an easygoing pace. The wings sliced through low clouds as the craft lazily cruised through the dark sky. "Don't fall asleep on me now." He said with a chuckle. She was honestly trying not to, but her eyes felt so heavy and her body ached from trying to keep a perfect posture the whole time, she couldn't help but dip in and out of consciousness when she was so comfortably positioned on his back.   
"But I…" she murmured as she shifted herself around to an even more comfortable position.  
"Alex, come on. Wake up. We're just about home." He said, but she didn't answer. She was sound asleep with her arms around him. He landed the ship and parked it in the hangar before pulling out the unconscious Alex and taking her to her room. 


	34. Utter Confusion Doesn't Mix with Pleasur

When she finally awoke, it was only about two hours later and she found herself lying in her bed with a blanket covering her slightly. She was still wearing the dress she wore to dinner and her hair was still intact. She sat up and pulled out all of the things she had in her hair until it fell out of the twist it was in. it fell past her shoulders and she passed her brush through it a few times until it untangled a little. She pulled the shoes off of her feet and tossed them to the floor at the foot of the bed before swinging her legs around out of the bed and she stood up. She walked to the closed door and opened it. Ed was sitting on the floor in front of the table playing at her computer and Spike and Jet were sitting at the table with their backs to the rest of the living area talking with someone. She wanted something to drink so she walked over to where the fridge was. She figured that the two guys were talking with a friend of theirs who had inside information on a lot of bounties, so she just wandered over into the kitchen to the little refrigerator.   
"Well its good to see the lady up and around." someone said. She whirled around slowly with a yawn to make eye contact with Blade. She dropped the bottle of water when she realized it was him.  
"Blade! What are you doing here? Didn't you say you had a photo shot after dinner?" she asked as the bottle bounced before rolling to a wall.  
"It's good to see you too." He said with a smile. For a second, he actually looked like his old self. She bent down and picked up the bottle. "After you left, I called the people up and rescheduled the shoot. Then I got our dinners boxed up and came here."   
"Oh, okay." She said as she cracked open the bottle and took a few sips.  
"Yea, he actually hasn't been here very long. He was telling us about the syndicate." Jet said.   
"There's nothing to really tell actually." Blade grinned as he glanced over at Alex, who was still standing over against the wall. "You know, you can sit down." He said as his tone began to warm. She screwed the cap back onto the bottle and started walking towards her bedroom.  
"Actually, I think I'm going to get changed first. I'll be right back." she said as she got to her room and shut the door. What the hell was he doing on the ship?! Something was going on and she couldn't quite figure it out. She quickly changed into a pair of her hakama pants (black of course) and a white t-shirt. Just before she left the room, she quickly twisted her hair up and clipped it and then pulled her red kimono on. she walked back out to the living area with her water bottle and past the table towards the corridor that led to the ship's bridge.   
"Hey chickie, where you going?" She heard Spike ask her. She looked over to him.  
"Oh, just up to the bridge." She said as she continued to walk out into the corridor towards her destination. Her bare feet made light thuds as she walked, but as she reached the door, they grew silent. The door slid open before her and allowed her in, but then shut behind her. She climbed into the pilot's seat and pulled the computer towards her. The screen came up and she began to play solitaire. The radio played as she sat there playing her computerized card game, alone in the quiet room. A few minutes passed before she heard the sound of the door sliding open and then shut and heavy footsteps on the floor.  
"What's up, you seem out of it." Blade asked. Alex pulled the clip out of her hair as it fell past her shoulders again and she tossed it into a nearby seat.  
"It's nothing." She said as she ran her fingers through her hair.  
"Really? If it's nothing, why are you tapping your fingers like that?" he pointed to her hand that resting on her knee and drumming anxiously.  
"I don't know. It's really nothing." She said as she stopped her fingers and sat on her hand.  
"You always drummed your fingers like that whenever you were worried or something was wrong." He said as he ran his fingers through her hair. She was really nervous now.  
"Well, people change their habits, you should know all about that." She said becoming annoyed.  
"What do you mean? What are you trying to get at Alex?" he asked becoming aware of her bad mood. He walked around to face her. She was practically scowling at the computer screen.  
"I'm just saying, you should know all about how people can change their personality since you went from such a nice person to the head of a crime syndicate. But wait, you have to marry me or else you have to kill me so I guess that won't be so hard…or will it?" she shot angrily.  
"Alex, quit it. You don't know what you're talking about." He said nervously. He knew that she knew about the rule of having relationships within the syndicate.   
"Oh yes I do and I don't appreciate it. I can't believe that after everything Jet told you the last time you were here didn't have any effect on you! Why did you do it Blade?" she asked as she began to yell at him. His eyes grew narrow and cold.  
"Because I wanted the life of someone who everyone was afraid of! I hated being the model that everyone swooned over because I was just so goddamn gorgeous; I felt like I was a caged animal that was forced to perform and be presented before everyone all the time. Yes, I still do some modeling work, but very little because it's just so frustrating when people are telling you to look two different ways at once and then expect you to be alright with certain poses. This is the life I want to lead, this is the life my father wanted me to lead!" he snapped. Alex was surprised with his comments. His face had grown full of anger and vexation, painful for Alex to look at. With their eyes locked, hers began to glaze over with tears and for the first time in her life, she was absolutely terrified of her best friend. He was breathing heavily after just yelling at her, and it was when he was catching his breath, he realized what he had done. As the tears slipped slowly down her cheeks, he began to shake. "Alex…I…" he began before she suddenly stood from her chair and walked to the glass dome that revealed the wide-open ocean before the ship. She stood in front of it, her back facing Blade, with her arms crossed and sniffling, trying to hold back her tears unsuccessfully.   
"I don't understand. Why?" she said, just above a whisper still with tears rolling down her face. He didn't bother walking any closer to her, he didn't want to.  
"I…I don't know." He said shamefully with his eyes locked onto the floor. The sound of her sobs made him want to start crying too.   
"I just…I don't understand what possessed such a sweet person like you to just up and become someone so cruel and harsh. It's just not like you." She said as she turned her head to her left as far as it'd go to look back at him without having to rotate the rest of her body. His hands were buried deep in his pockets and his eyes to the floor.   
"Maybe it was my father's influence. The men just came up to me one night after a shoot and made it sound so absolutely wonderful to be the head of the syndicate. I leapt at the chance. I didn't know what I was getting into." He said as he pulled his right hand from his pocket and held it to his cheek.  
"Blade, don't feel so bad about yourself." She said as she turned her whole body to look at him.  
"No, I should've listened to Jet. He warned me about what would happen and I went and did it anyway." He said as he scolded himself. With her arms still crossed, she slowly walked over to him. The sound of her feet padding towards him forced him to look up at her. Her face was still damp with tears, but she was smiling. She saw the corners of his eyes glistening with tears, realizing he knew he was sorry for what he had done. She walked right into him and wrapped her arms around him, holding him close.   
"It's alright. I forgive you. Bad judgment isn't always easy to overcome." She said as her tears ran into his coat.  
"But it's easier if you have someone with you to help." He whispered into her ear as he kissed the side of her neck.   
"Blade…" she whispered in protest. He nipped at her earlobes and pulled her closer to him. He kissed his way down to her breastbone, just above the neckline of her tank top. "Blade…" she protested once again but was silenced by his index finger to her lips.  
"Shhh. Don't worry about anything." He said just as he crushed his lips into hers. He took her breath away and she was too confused to do anything. What about Spike? Why not Blade? She didn't know whether to stop or continue, so she just stood there and let him take her over. His hands eased her kimono off of her shoulders as it slid to the floor. She brought her arms up around his neck and pulled herself up on her toes to get closer to him. As their tongues wrestled in their mouths, his hands found their way to the bottom of her shirt. He slowly slipped them underneath and up her torso to her round, full breasts. As his hands massaged them, Alex grew more nervous. Blade was her best friend, but he wanted more. Spike was her first true love. Was lust temporarily clouding her judgment? She knew her answer was 'yes' when he began to pinch her erect nipples. The wonderful sensation washed over her body and made her love him even more. What was going on?  
"Oh Blade, I…" she uttered between his kisses as he began to pull himself away from her lips. He pulled his hands back down from her breasts and then lifted her shirt, just enough to expose her bare chest to him. He pushed her into the pilot's seat and then fell to his knees in front of her  
"Just relax." He said as he kissed her again and resumed massaging her breasts. He then lightly kissed his way, down along her jaw line and then down her neck. Alex wrapped her fingers around his silver silken hair as he gradually made it down her breastbone and then stopped. Suddenly, she felt his tongue on her left nipple. Her body was reeling with pleasurable feelings as he began to bite down on the erect teat lightly. Her back arched and her breathing became heavier. He then left her breasts and made his way further down her body, past the bottom of her rib cage and to her navel. She grew increasingly nervous as he continued past her belly button towards the top of her hakamas. He began to tug at the first button and she couldn't take it anymore.  
"Blade, no." she said shifting around nervously. He looked up at her worried face.  
"It'll be alright. I love you." He said calmly and reassuringly. He got the button undone and the zipper down, but as he tugged the pants away, she shifted again. She was shaking badly; she didn't want this. She wanted to be with Spike, not Blade. "Alex, calm down. I wouldn't hurt you." He reassured once again. His hands squeezed her breasts once more and then trailed down her body to her black thong. As his fingers slipped around the waistband, she shifted once more.  
"Blade, knock it off," she practically yelled as the door opened with a quiet whoosh just as she said the 'knock it off' part. His fingers pulled slowly, paying no attention to the sound of the door. "Stop!" She said as she twisted her legs to hide herself from him.  
"Alex, what the hell?" he asked as he wrapped his hands around her leg. "I thought you loved me! Don't you want this?"  
"I'm sorry Blade. I do want this," she began as he looked at her like a confused little kid, "but not with you." She stood up and re-buttoned her pants. She turned and picked up her kimono when her eyes caught sight of a figure in the doorway.   
"What was going on in here?" Spike asked not only confused, but frustrated at what he had just witnessed. 


	35. All Is Forgiven

. Alex's kimono floated to the floor as it fell from her grip. She felt herself grow cold and her heart skipping beats. How much had he seen? What was he thinking? Was he angry with her?  
"Oh, hello Lee. Alex and I were just…talking." He said as he pulled himself to his feet and walked up behind her. She couldn't pull her eyes from Spike's face, which displayed no emotion whatsoever. Blade rested his hands on her shoulders. "I have to go for now, I'll call you in the morning." He said as he kissed her cheek and then walked around her. He walked past Spike and out the door. It closed behind him with another quiet whoosh. They heard the main door open and shut before either of them made any movement or said anything. Alex was the first; with tears running down her face, she fell to her knees and hid her face in her hands as she began to cry. Spike didn't move at all.  
"I can't believe I did that! Spike, you have no idea how ashamed I am. I am so sorry!" she sobbed as her hair shrouded her face. Her tears splashed onto her hands and trailed down her forearms to her elbows, where they dripped onto her pants. Still on her knees, she balled herself into a fetal position on the floor and continued to cry, not as loudly though. "My god, if you don't want to speak to me ever again, I'd understand. I feel so horrible." She moaned as she clutched her stomach. Spike knew she was sorry; she never did this before. He'd seen her cry when she was upset and she was sorry, but not to this extent. He walked over to her and knelt beside her. She was shaking violently and sobbing which made Spike think; was he like this after he hurt her earlier? He placed his hand on her back and rubbed her quaking body.  
"Calm down Alex. It's alright." He said soothingly. She sat up and looked at him as she pulled her hair out of her face.  
"What do you mean it's alright? You saw what happened! I can't believe you'd still love me after that." She said further scolding herself.  
"Snap out of it! I don't care what he did, all I care about is what you said when he was about to…you know." He said.  
"What?" she asked. He smiled at her.  
"You said you wanted to do that, just not with him. That gives me reason to believe you wished he were me when he did that. Am I right?" he grinned as Alex wiped her eyes. She looked at his smiling face and couldn't help but smile herself. She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tight.  
"Oh Spike! I love you." She cried as her tears bled into his shirt when she buried her face in his shoulder. He held her close in return.  
"After all you went through when you were younger, I was afraid to even suggest the idea because I didn't want you to think that was what I wanted from you. If I'm pressuring you into doing it, I don't want you to feel uncomfortable. Just tell me to stop and I'll back off." He said somewhat lecturing her.  
"Well, technically, I'm still a virgin. So you'd have to take the lead." She teased as she nuzzled into his shoulder.  
"Not tonight. We've all had a rough day so we should get plenty of rest." He said as he picked her up in his arms.  
"My kimono!" she said pointing to the red satin pile of cloth on the floor as she wrapped her one arm around his neck. He walked over and bent down far enough for her to reach out and pick it up before standing again and carrying her out of the room. He walked down the corridor and into the living area where Jet sat at the kitchen table reading a paper and Ed was sitting on the floor by the couch typing away at her computer while Ein slept on the floor beside her. Jet glanced up to see his partner carrying his other partner into their bedroom.  
"Hey! I'd prefer you not do that on this ship!" he said getting the idea that they were going to have sex. He heard a giggle from Alex as she dropped onto her bed with a bounce. Spike peeked back out of the doorway.  
"Fine, we're going out tomorrow night and won't be back until the next day." He chuckled with a grin. Jet slammed his paper down on the table.  
"ARG! I didn't need to know that!!!" he yelled as Spike disappeared inside the room and the door shut. Ed and Ein looked at him.  
"Do what?" Ed asked with her head slightly cocked to the side, like a puppy.  
"Nothing." Jet grumbled as he returned to reading his paper. Ed shrugged her shoulders and returned to her computer as Ein put his head down and went back to sleep.  
  
Inside the bedroom, Spike was acting like a dumb ass, trying to make Alex feel better. He told stupid jokes, made horrible impressions, and just did stupid things to make her laugh. When he was sure she was feeling a lot better, he pulled his shirt off and switched into his sleep pants before jumping into bed with a still giggling Alex.   
"Feeling better sweetheart?" he asked as he wrapped his arms around her. She wrapped her arms around him as hey pulled each other close.  
"Uh huh." She smiled and nodded. Spike smiled and kissed her forehead. She kissed his forehead and then rolled over to face away from him.   
"Night dear." He whispered into her ear.   
"G'night honey." She said as he pulled her close around her waist. Within a few minutes, the both of them had fallen into a deep sleep.  
  
The next morning, Alex woke up in the bed by herself. The clock read just after six, so it was her guess that Spike was out exercising on the dock like he did every morning. She rolled out of bed and walked out into the living area. There was a piece of paper on the table by the couch folded in half with Alex's name scribbled on it. She picked it up and opened it up. It was a note from Jet.  
'Pidge Bordeaux called last night after you went to bed; he'll be here at noon today. I ran out with Spike and we won't be back until about 1 or 2. -Jet' Well how's about that. She crumpled the paper up and tossed it towards the trashcan. It bounced off the edge and fell to the floor beside it.   
"Well thank god I don't play basketball for a living." She said to herself out loud. She went over to the can and put the paper in before walking over to the refrigerator to see what kind of food there was. Ed was probably still in bed, so she decided to boil some water for hot chocolate, she wasn't really hungry anyway. She put the water on and then went over to the computer and turned it on, hoping there was a good bounty on Big Shot at some point this morning. The water came to a boil quickly, so she poured her hot drink and sat in front of the computer, watching Big Shot for most of the morning. It was about 10:30 when she got an incoming call. With a push of a button, an audio and video link opened.  
"Hello?" she answered. Pidge's face came up on screen.  
"Hey there Alex. How are you?" he asked with a smile.  
"Good. I got a note that you're supposed to come over around noon today, right?" she asked.  
"Yep, that's what I was calling about. I was just checking to make sure you were going to be around." he nodded.  
"Yea, I'm going to be here, no problem."   
"Alright, well I'll see you in about an hour and a half then." He said.  
"Okay Pidge, see you soon." She said as she closed the connection and sat back on the couch. She had to get ready and she hadn't seen Ed or Ein yet today. She took her mug to the sink and went and peeked in Ed's room. She was sitting in front of her computer with her goggles on and Ein sitting at her side. "Ed?" Alex asked as she stepped into the room.  
"Yessum?" she asked twisting her head to look at Alex.  
"I'm getting into the shower, just wanted to see of you were awake yet." She said as she turned to walk out again.  
"O-Tay!" she said with a goofy smile.  
"Answer the phone if it rings!" she called when she was half way to the shower.  
"UH HUH!" Ed yelled in response. Alex couldn't help but giggle as she stepped into the bathroom. 


	36. A Childhood Friend in the Dark

She showered quickly and went back to her room to get dressed. She found a pair of raggedy old jeans in one of her drawers and a white wife beater she could wear. It was roughly 11:15 and she decided she should straighten up a little. She cleaned up her and Spike's room, neatened up Spike's old bedroom that was now known as the gunroom, and did some light cleaning around the living area. By the time she finished, it was about half an hour later and Pidge would be by soon. She closed the door to the gunroom tightly and locked it before flopping down on the couch for a brief rest.  
"Oh man, this ship needs an all over scrub down." She sighed as she let her headrest back on the cushions of the top of the couch. Ed looked down at her with a smile.  
"Hi-ya pretty Alex!" she said cheerfully. Alex gave a cheesy smile.  
"Hi there silly Ed."   
"I have a question for you." Ed said as she walked around to the side of the couch and sat on the floor facing Alex.  
"Yea?"   
"Why was that oh so yummy Blade McGowan here last night?" She grinned happily. It made her day to see the famous model, but it only made Alex feel sick.  
"We went out to dinner last night and he came to check on me after Spike came and brought me home." She said with an emotionless tone of voice.  
"Why did you not tell Ed you knew him!" She protested. Alex looked down into her playfully angry eyes.  
"Because he's not the man you think he is. Trust me, there's nothing great about him Ed." She said as she let her head lean back and she shut her eyes with a frustrating sigh. Last night's memories filled her head and she wished she could forget them. Sure, he made her feel good, but it wasn't what she wanted, from him anyway. She decided she should wait out on the top deck for Pidge to show up so they could head right into the hangar and evaluate the Pegasus. She stood up and went to her room to retrieve her guitar. To her surprise, Ed followed her into her room, out of the living area, and up to the hangar. Both the Swordfish and Hammerhead were missing, but the Pegasus still sat with the piles of weeds and dirt around the landing gear. Alex opened the Hangar door and revealed the sunny open deck and a glistening sea. Ed followed her as she walked out to the end of the deck and sat down with guitar in hand. She wanted to play something to get her in a good mood, so she began to play a song from an old anime that came out about 2000.  
"Ooh, ooh! I know what you're playing Alex-san!" Ed shouted as Alex strummed the strings and producing a warm and friendly tone.  
"Then sing with me then." She smiled. Ed nodded and they began to sing together.  
"Fukai, fukai, mori no, oku ni, ima mo kitto; okizari ni, shita kokoro, kakushite'ru yo." They sang. It was one of the closing theme songs to the anime Inuyasha from back around the year 2000. They sang the whole song once through.  
"Ed, your voice is really sounding good. When I start to record some of my songs, do you want to be a backup singer?" Alex asked as she just randomly strummed chords on her guitar.   
"I have to sing when you can't?" Ed asked.  
"No," Alex chuckled, "while I'm singing, you sing in the background." Ed thought a moment.  
"Could I sing and play on the drums at the same time?" she asked. Alex nodded. "Okay!"  
"Great. We'll do a song as soon as I get the recording equipment, okay?" Ed nodded happily.  
"Alrighty!" she said with a thumbs up. Alex went back to playing her random chords when there was a loud horn. She handed Ed the guitar and stood up. She walked over to the edge to see Pidge in a street legal muscle car. He stepped out and looked up.  
"PIDGE!" She yelled as a greeting as she waved her arm.  
"Hey up there Alex! How's about letting me up there?" he called. She walked over towards the hangar opening and pushed the button for the ramp to come down. She heard the engine stop as it parked and he walked up the ramp. She walked out to meet him where the ramp came to the deck. She met him and hugged him.  
"Good to see ya Pidge, thanks for coming by." She said as Ed walked over.  
"No problem. I need to see if you're telling the truth anyway you little sneak." He grinned as she led him into the hangar. "Quite a ship you got here."  
"Yea, for four people and a dog, it's not too bad." She said as they entered the hangar and the Pegasus came into view.   
"Goddamn, well I'll be a son of a bitch." He said in disbelief. "It is a GT Peg! Where did you find it?"  
"A dealership not to far from here with an open meadow. It was right at the tree line and it was overgrown with shrubbery. I had to cut through all the foliage to get it out. There's still tons of stuff stuck in the landing gear and the cockpit dome is full of bullet holes and cracks. I haven't even checked the engine yet, I figured I'd save that for you." She said walking around the ship and pointing out its problems. He eyed each one carefully.  
"Well, before we get to the most difficult part of the ship, the landing gear looks like it just needs a good cleaning for now, a new cockpit dome will be a definite, and the body looks like it could use some major work." He said as he ran his fingers over a cluster of bullet holes on the side of the ship.   
"I figured that," she said as her eyes caught sight of a boy who looked about her age walking towards them. He had brown hair with spiky bangs that hung in his face. As he walked, a long and thick braid swayed behind him that was down to his lower back. His eyes sparkled a bold cobalt color as he carried a thick book with him. He wore a black t-shirt and blue jeans with a silver chain around his neck. Alex looked at him strangely.   
"About time you decided to come out of the car. I thought you wanted to come." Pidge said as he turned and looked at the boy.  
"Yea, yea, yea." The boy said with a sigh. "So what are we doing here, picking up parts, fixing a ship?"   
"No, we're taking up a project; a big one at that." Pidge said with a smile. Alex still couldn't figure out who he was, but he seemed to be checking her out at the same time.  
"You want to fix it up for me?" Alex asked realizing he said he was taking up the project. Before he could answer, the young man stepped in front of him and took Alex's hand.  
"Why of course my dear lady. I'll see to it personally that your ship is repaired totally." He said as he kissed her hand with a smile. For a second, she thought she recognized him, but dismissed her thought. Pidge couldn't help but start laughing hysterically.   
"What's the deal Pidge?" Alex asked. He wiped a tear from his eye.  
"You don't even know her name and you're trying to hook her!" he giggled. The boy flipped open his book to a clean page and pulled out a pen from the spiral binding.  
"Right, sorry about that miss. Can I ask the name of the beautiful woman who needs our service?" Pidge giggled louder.  
"Alexis." She smiled. Pidge quieted down for a moment.  
"And your last name?" he asked as he finished writing her first name.  
"Bondora." She said as she watched him put the tip of the pen to his paper.  
"WHAT!?" he screamed. Pidge lost it and fell to the floor in a fit of laughter. The boy looked at her wide-eyed and his jaw to the floor. She nodded. "No way!"  
"Alex, if you haven't figured out who this kid is, it's my son Jordan." Pidge stammered through his laughter. Now it was her turn to be shocked.  
"No!" she gasped. Her eyes were wide and her jaw was at the floor, as if mirroring Pidge's son.  
"Yup!" he giggled still rolling on the floor. He sat himself up and then stood before wrapping his arm around Jordan's shoulder. "He decided to stop cutting his hair when he was six and look at it now. I told him he looks like a hippie." Jordan's face started to turn red. Alex finally started to laugh herself.  
" I can't believe he's the little brat that used to follow me around all the time!" she said with a smile. Pidge nodded.  
"Yep, he'll be 20 in a few months and he decided to take over the family business. Here he is as my apprentice and soon to take over the shop." He said.  
"Does he get a lot of dates?" Alex joked, Jordan frowned, Pidge laughed.  
"Oh shut up!" he grumbled as he slammed shut his notebook.   
"Hey, you were just hitting on me a minute ago!" she snapped. "You're lucky my boyfriend isn't here. He'd beat you up." She grinned.   
"You don't have a boyfriend, you're lying." He shot back.   
"Hang around then, maybe he'll be back before you leave." She taunted. He frowned and then went back to scribbling in his notebook.   
"He'll be alright after it sinks in. Anyway, lets check the engine shall we?" Pidge asked walking up to the partially exposed heart of the ship. She didn't say anything as he pulled and yanked some wires, hammered on some gears, and pulled some parts out. She knew that he knew what he was doing, so why should she worry? Suddenly, he withdrew his hand quickly with a yell.  
"What?" she asked as he rubbed his hand. She saw some blood and what looked like bite marks.  
"There's a squirrel or something in there." He said looking at the tiny bite that was spurting out bright red blood.   
"Ed." Alex turned and called. Ed looked up from the corner she was sitting in. she looked at Alex for a second and then nodded before standing up and heading into the ship. "And take Mr. Bordeaux with you and do something about his hand."  
"Okie day." She said as Pidge followed her into the ship. Jordan and Alex were left alone in the hangar. She peeked into the place where Pidge had his hand and saw a pair of golden eyes shining back at her. She sighed and shook her head.  
"Critter?" Jordan asked from behind.   
"Yea, looks like a badger or something." She said as she looked to see what was around it. "Well, I'll be able to get it out since it's not around anything that can't be fixed." She said.   
"How do you plan on doing that?" he asked as he walked up to her and looked in for himself.  
"Well, I suppose you could call it force." She said as Ed ran up to her.   
"Is this the one you wanted?" she asked as she presented Alex with a handgun. To Jordan's surprise, she picked it up and looked it over.  
"Yea, now go take care of his hand." She said as she patted Ed's head. With a smile, she skipped back into the ship. Jordan watched in shock as she pulled a few bullets out of one of her pockets and loaded the gun.  
"What are you doing?" he asked still surprised. Alex looked at him.  
"Huh? Oh that's right, you don't know." She said as she poured the rest of the bullets back into her pocket and cocked the gun.  
"Don't know you had a gun? Yea!" he said in alarm. She chuckled nervously.  
"Uh, no, I have a lot more that I share with my boyfriend, but it kinda relates to my job." She said as she looked into the hole where the animal was.   
"What, are you a cop or something? Why do you need so many guns?" she poked the gun into the hole and aimed it. She pulled her face away and squeezed off three rounds before pulling the gun out. She stuck it in her back pocket temporarily and reached in the hole all the way.  
"I'm a bounty hunter." She said as she felt around for the dead animal. Blood dripped onto the floor under the engine as she began to pull it out. 


	37. All Plans on Hold

"You're kidding, right?" he asked even more feared for his life. She pulled the bloody carcass out and dropped it to the floor.   
"Nope, dead serious. How do you think I got all the money I make? Working at a fast food joint? We're all bounty hunters. Ed's our resident hacker and me, Spike, and Jet go out and do the dirty work." She explained as she bent down and examined the bloody creature.   
"I can't believe what I'm hearing, you can't be a bounty hunter! It's just not true!" he said as he scratched his head. With the same bloody had she used to pull the animal out, she picked it up and took it out to the deck.  
"Yup, I'm an old fashioned cowboy…err, cowgirl." She said as she tossed the dead body into the ocean below. She was walking back into the hangar when Pidge raced in.  
"I heard a gun shot, what happened?" he questioned.  
"It was just me," she said as she picked up a rag and started to wipe off her hands. He sighed.  
"You know, one of these days, you'll kill me. I swear." He grumbled.  
"Nah, I don't think so." She smiled. "Anyway, it was a raccoon. Might want to get checked out for rabies, but I think you'll be alright." She said as she tucked the rag into her other back pocket and wiped some sweat from her forehead.  
"You're too kind. But the engine needs a lot of work. There's a possibility it may even have to be totally rebuilt." He lectured as he rubbed his bandaged hand.  
"Well, that gives us the ability to customize the engine, doesn't it?" she asked as she propped her hands on her waist. Pidge nodded.  
"Yea, but you're looking at millions of woolongs." He said. "Not that that would be a problem for you." Jordan looked at him.  
"Why didn't you tell me?" he questioned.  
"Oh, so you told him huh?" Pidge asked Alex. She nodded.  
"He was asking about the gun, so I figured I should tell him." She said pulling her gun out again and emptying it of the unused bullets.   
"You knew?" Jordan exclaimed. Pidge nodded.  
"Yup, didn't want you to go blabbing to your mother or your friends, so I didn't think to tell ya. But mom found out a few weeks ago." He said.  
"Uh oh, how'd she take it?" Alex giggled. He shook his head.  
"How do you think?" The two of them laughed while Jordan was still left confused and in the dark.  
"Well I guess you want to get back home soon and do some brainstorming," she began.  
"It's your ship, you should be involved in the planning too. Why don't we head inside and sit down?" he insisted. She shrugged her shoulders.  
"Eh? Yea, why the hell not." She said as she started for the door. She pushed a button to close the outside hangar doors as she walked through the doorway into the ship. The two followed her down through the corridors into the living area where Ed was playing with Ein. "Since I forgot to introduce you earlier, this is Ed, our computer genius." She said as she pointed to her. She smiled and waved to the three of them.  
"What about the other two?" Jordan asked.  
"I told you they went out and they'll be back in a little while, don't you listen?" she snapped. Yea, he was cute, but still the little brat that always followed her around. She heard him grumble as Ein ran over to her. "And this is Ein. He's Jet's dog but I guess you should say he belongs to all of us." She said as she reached down and scratched his head.   
"Touching." Jordan grumbled.   
"Oh shut up and sit down!" She barked as she led them over to the kitchen table. Her two guests sat to either side of her at the table and Pidge pulled out a large rolled up sheet of paper and flattened it out on the table.  
"I did some research last night and found a copy of the original GT Pegasus plans. These should help us make heads or tails of the engine and wiring." He said. He went on talking about how he got them but then started to point out key parts they'd need to find and weren't going to be easy to find. They were discussing different designs for the cockpit dome when the outside door opened and shut.  
"We're home!" Jet called as they entered the living area.   
"Hi honey!" Alex smiled as Spike entered. He walked over to her with a wide smile.  
"Hey there sweetheart." He said as he leaned down and gave her a kiss.  
"Where did you go?" she asked in a childish tone.  
"Nowhere. Just out for a little ride." He said with a sly grin.  
"Didja bring me anything?" she smiled.  
"No, aren't we going out tonight?"  
"Oh yea!"  
"Nice to see you again Spike, how ya doing?" Pidge said as he stood and shook his hand.  
"I'm doing well Mr. Bordeaux, and you?" he asked.  
"Could be better, but I'm alright." He said as he rubbed his hand. Spike was already glancing at the young man sitting at Alex's side. "Oh, and I'd like you to meet my son Jordan." Jordan stood and took Spike's hand. Alex looked at the two of them, they stood almost even but Jordan was a little shorter.  
"Nice to meet you Jordan." Spike said with a friendly smile.   
"Yea, Alex tells me a lot about you. It's good to meet the famed boyfriend." He said forcing himself to smile. Spike could sense that kind of thing, it was like a sixth sense he had.  
"I wish I could say the same, but she doesn't really talk about her past." He said still trying to force forward a positive attitude. Jet disappeared up to the bridge within 5 minutes of walking into the ship.  
"I'm going with Jet, you three sit and make your plans." Spike said walking up to Alex once again and leaning down to her. He kissed her forehead and smiled. "Play nice."  
"I always do." She said as he walked off to join Jet. Jordan took his seat beside her again as they continued to plot out the design for her Pegasus. They were sitting for maybe 15 minutes before they heard the sound of someone running from the bridge. Alex looked up to see Spike leap down the steps and through the living area. "Spike?" Alex said as she stood, worried by what she had just seen.  
"Don't get up. I have to run out after a bounty." He said as he threw open the door to the gunroom and started rummaging around inside.   
"I'll be right back," she said, excusing herself from their presence and then dashing into the gunroom after her love. She entered in time to see her man pulling out several guns from different drawers and closets. "What are you doing?"   
"Jet's buddy at the ISSP just relayed information about a highly violent and hostile bounty that's gone on a rampage a few miles from here." He panted as he began to load a large gun.  
"All the more reason for you to stay here!" he insisted. He looked up at her.  
"He's worth 80 million." He said as he continued to load the gun. She looked at him dumbfounded. "And that's the price if he's killed. Get him alive and he's 100." Her jaw dropped but then her conscience snapped her out of it.  
"If he's worth that much, he's too dangerous. You told me yourself that Mad Pierrot was only 52 million!" she said. Spike began to recall how he had almost been killed twice when he faced off with that mad man.   
"But I'm all about the thrill of the chase, not to mention the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow."  
"Yea well your life isn't worth it! I'd rather have you than any amount of money!" she protested loudly. Pidge and Jordan probably heard her, but she didn't care because he was more important to her.  
"I'll be alright Alex. Don't worry." He said as he began to conceal several guns in his many pockets and hidden holsters. "I'll be home in no time with the 100 million." He said as he kissed her forehead and headed for the door. She followed him out of the room and through the living area. Her two guests were still at the table, but were discussing something with their attention fixed to the blueprints on the table. She walked with Spike up to the hangar and to the side of the Swordfish.  
"Spike," she uttered when she grabbed his coat as he started to climb into the cockpit. He stopped and came back down to her. "Don't go. Please." She said. She was extremely upset and was ready to start crying. The higher the price of the bounty, odds are that the bounty is increasingly difficult and sometimes even deadly. Spike wrapped his arms around her.  
"Y'know, when I went to take out Mad Pierrot I thought I wasn't coming back. The reason I didn't think I was coming back, was because I didn't really have much to come back to. With you here, I know I'll come back because I have you to come home to." She inhaled his scent deeply, hoping this wouldn't be the last time she'd see him alive.   
"Spike, I really don't want you to go." She pleaded.   
"I have to. Besides, think of what we can do with what we'll have when I get back." he reassured with a soft kiss to her lips before turning to ascend into the Swordfish. He was only pulled back down. He turned to face her. "Wha…" he said. He couldn't even get the full word out before receiving a sharp and stinging slap across his face. "What the hell was that for?!"  
"Kiss me like you mean it god damn it." She growled as he rubbed his cheek. He only smiled.  
"Bitch, I'll do what I want." He said as he took her in his arms. They leaned in and their noses rubbed. Their lips touched and then the deep kiss followed, lasting for close to a minute. He let her go and climbed into his ship.  
"Come back to me alive…or at least in one piece." She said as the cockpit shut and sealed. He gave her a thumbs up and a big smile as the engine started and the ship rolled out of the hangar. The jets kicked on and he was off and into the sky like a shooting star. If he came back dead, she would kill Jet for sending him out there alone. 


	38. Waiting For His Return

She walked back into the ship, through the corridors just rubbing her crossed arms in thought. She came back to the living area and eventually sat back at the table.   
"So what was that all about?" Pidge asked.  
"A rather large bounty that Spike shouldn't have gone out on alone to get. Y'see, generally the more money a bounty is worth, it usually means they're more dangerous. The most he's dealt with and come back barely alive was a 52 million woolong man who we didn't even get the money because he killed himself. He couldn't move for days and he was asleep most of the time. I wasn't here for it, but he told me all about what happened." She explained.  
"How much is the guy he's after now?" Jordan asked.   
"Well," she sighed, "This one's a little different. Bounties are usually wanted alive. If he's killed he's worth 80 million." The two of them looked at her wide-eyed. "If he's caught and he's alive, 100 million for the person who is lucky enough to nab him." She explained sadly.  
"Well look at it this way, he knows what he's doing and he hasn't gotten himself killed yet, so he shouldn't have a problem with him. After all, didn't he chase after that Vincent Volaju about a year back? I think that if that 300 million woolong bounty didn't kill him, no one can." Pidge said trying to keep Alex thinking positively.   
"I guess you're right." She sighed as she went back to the table and helped map out some more possibilities for her craft. It was starting to wear into the early evening and there was still no word from Spike. Pidge and Jordan could sense Alex's uneasiness and took the hint that it was about time for them to go.  
"If you're still around tomorrow, give a call and we'll see what's planned, alright?" Pidge said as he gathered his things and prepared to leave. Jordan kinda just sat there with a worried look on his face, watching Alex. All the years he'd known her, he'd never seen her this upset except for when her parents were killed. It was like she had no emotion whatsoever now aside from being distraught. "C'mon Jordan. Ma's probably getting frustrated." He said trying to get the boy's attention. Jordan snapped out of his trance and slowly stood to follow his father.  
"Alex?" he asked. She looked at him blankly. "Don't worry, Spike'll come back alright." She smiled at him weakly and nodded. The phone rang and Alex jolted to life, rushing for it. She tripped over a chair and slammed her knee into the table, but didn't care; she grabbed the phone and picked it up as she fell to the floor. Her knee was bleeding as she pushed the phone button on and held it to her ear.   
"Hello?" she asked frantically.   
"Alex." Came Blade's suave voice from over the phone. Pidge and Jordan rushed over to see if she was alright. They found her sitting on the cold floor, her knee bloody, and tears streaming down her cheeks as she sobbed into the phone. She wiped the tears away quickly.  
"Oh…hi Blade." She said acting as if nothing was wrong. Pidge disappeared but Jordan stayed.  
"What's wrong, you sound upset dear." He tried to sound sincere, but it sounded more poisonous than anything. It was then she realized her knee was cut up. She put her hand over it to try and stop it, but Jordan was already at her side with a dishtowel.   
"No, I'm fine. I was just waiting for a really, really important call was all." She sniffed. Jordan had pressed the towel down and tried to stop the blood.   
"Oh, well can I call you later then?" He asked. Jordan was examining the gash and occasionally getting some blood out.   
"You're better off calling tomorrow, I got to go." She said as the tears began to flow again. Pidge reappeared with Jet to find Jordan trying to help Alex with the bloodstained towel.   
"Jesus Christ Alex!" Jet called as he rushed to her. She hung up the phone and started to cry again.  
"The phone rang…I thought it was Spike…and I guess I…" she sobbed as the phone hit the floor. Jet rushed to her other side and looked at her knee. Ed was next to run over with Ein at her heels to see what was up.   
"Alex-san! You're knee is crying red water!" she pointed. Alex cringed as Jet poured some water onto the gash to try to clean it out a little.  
"Ed, go do something, ok!" Jet ordered. She dashed off with Ein on her heels. The tears poured down her face like waterfalls as she picked up the phone once again, just to hold it close to her.  
"I want him to come home Jet, make him call and come home!" Alex demanded through her tears as he continued to clean the wound. He felt bad for her, especially since he knew what Spike was up against, how much they loved each other, and what he and Spike went out for that morning and what they discussed. He wanted him to come back alive; he couldn't bear to see Alex like this. Pidge and Jordan sat back and watched Jet work as he finished cleaning the wound and then bandaged it. He wrapped his arms around her and hugged her.  
"I want him to come home too Alex, but he wanted to do this one. He was going and that was final. He wouldn't let me stop him as hard as I tried." He told her. He picked her up and carried his crying friend to the couch to lie down.   
"But you didn't have to tell him about the bounty!" she cried. He shook his head.  
"No, he saw it himself on Big Shot." He said as he placed her down. She kept the phone close to her, cradled in her arms. As she lay there on the soft couch, her eyes grew heavy and soon had closed with the phone still clutched in her hands. "Now would probably be a good time for you two to go." Jet said. Pidge placed a hand on Jordan's shoulder.  
"Mr. Black, I'd like to stay with her. I think she could really use a friend's company right now." He said with his face slightly blushed. Jet shook his head.  
"She needs to sleep. I'll have her call you when she wakes up. Just don't be like her when she was waiting for Spike to call, ok?" Jordan sighed and nodded. The two of them left and went home, leaving Jet, Ed, and Ein with a sleeping and totally distraught Alex. Jet sat in the pilot chair playing solitaire into the early morning hours, thinking about what was going on. He found himself wandering to the living area around three and found Alex still asleep on the couch. He stood over her and just watched her sleep. "That idiot better come back and tell you how he feels before he gets himself killed." He said to her knowing that she couldn't hear him in her sleep. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the receipt from the jewelry store he and Spike went into earlier that day. "I won't pay the bill for this if he doesn't." He walked over to the wall and unplugged the phone that Alex was holding onto, so it wouldn't wake her up if it rang. He wandered to his bedroom and crashed out for a few hours, trying to get some sleep between the continuous bad feelings about Spike that kept washing over him.   
Early the next morning, Ed was up first of all three of the group. She had come from her room with her goggles strapped to her forehead and dragging a half-conscious and irritated Ein with her. She wandered out towards the kitchen to look for some food when she found Alex sitting up at the table with a cup of coffee.  
"Alex-san? You don't drink coffee in the morning, you drink hot cocoa!" she said as she walked up to the table and sniffed the cup. She wrinkled her nose as she picked up another scent from the dark brown liquid. "What else did you put in there?" Alex smiled tiredly, she wanted to just give up on Spike, but she couldn't.  
"It's called Bailey's Irish Cream. It's alcohol." She explained as she looked at the half empty bottle that she remembers finding full this morning. There were dark circles under her eyes and bags large enough to hold watermelons. She could only smile weakly as Ein began to bark. It woke Jet and prompted him to come out and see what all the noise was about. When he saw Alex with not only the coffee, but also the alcohol, he got worried real quick.   
"Alex, you shouldn't drink like this." He said as he reached for the bottle. She beat him to it and grinned as she turned it about several times.  
"How do you want me to drink then? Like this?" she asked as she picked it up and chugged down whatever was left, finishing every last drop before smashing the bottle on the floor into dozens of pieces. She began to cry hysterically as she threw her head down onto the table. Jet stood next to her, but crouched down to her level.  
"Alex, I know it hurts, you of all people should know. Spike will come back alive sooner or later; it took him a couple of months to come back after he fought Vicious. He'll be back, don't worry. Now go take a hot shower, I'll give you some cash and you can go shopping." He said as he rubbed her back to comfort her. With a couple of sniffs, she nodded and headed off for their bedroom to get some clothes. Jet sighed and began to pick up the glass that was scattered about the floor when he heard a gunshot. "Oh god, tell me she didn't!" he said as he rant to her room. He saw her standing there with her personalized handgun pointed at her pillow. On the pillow was a picture of her and Spike with the glass shattered and a bullet-hole through where Spike's head should've been. She looked up at Jet and headed for the doorway after she tossed the gun to the bed.  
"I feel a little better," she said as she walked past him. He heard her walk down the hallway and go into the bathroom. After hearing the water start, he sighed a sigh of relief.  
"Spike, what have you done to this poor girl?" he asked the faceless picture as he took it in his hands. The glass only crumbled to the floor in response with a crystalline tinkle. 


	39. She wants to relax

When Alex came from the shower totally dressed and practically ready to go, the broken bottle of Bailey's was cleaned up and so was the mess of glass and the bullet from the shot to the picture. Even the pillow was replaced. She picked up some things like her cell phone, the money Jet had left her, and her handgun. She put the gun in a purse with the money and the phone. As she came out of her room, she put on a pair of sunglasses and came face to face with Jet.   
"I'm going out, I don't know when I'll be back, call me if you hear from Spike." She said as she walked past him. She didn't sound her happy self, nor did she sound sad. It was a dull and monotone, emotionless voice coming from her.  
"Just do me a favor?" he asked. She turned and looked at him. "Take Ed with you. She's been wanting to go out and hang out with you for a while." Alex thought for a moment.  
"Ed! Get your ass out here before I leave without you!" She yelled. Ed bounced out of her room and smiled at Alex.  
"Alex-san, you sounded like Faye-Faye!" she said as she pulled the goggles off and looked at Alex goofily. She couldn't help but crack a smile despite her bad mood.  
"C'mon goofball, let's go." She said as she dragged her out the door. Ed shot Jet two thumbs up as she disappeared through the doorway. He hoped that all Alex needed to cheer up was an outing with Ed, after all, laughter is supposed to be the best medicine.  
  
"Alex-san? Can we get some ice-cream?" Ed asked her. Alex eyed her.  
"It's nine in the morning and you want ice cream? How's about closer to lunch?" she said trying to reason with the young girl. Ed shook her head.  
"But I want to get some now!"  
"I'll tell ya what, if you wait until lunchtime for ice cream, I'll buy you plenty of ice cream." She said as they walked off the docks and into the city.   
"Okie-day!" she said as they wandered through the streets. They spent most of the morning window shopping, occasionally making a small purchase or two. When they finally stopped for lunch, Ed had a bunch of computer games and programs and Alex had a few graphic novels, a sketchpad, and some art supplies as well as some sheet music paper. They got lunch at a small café on the street and sat out in the sun while eating. Ed's happiness was working on Alex; she was in a much better mood than this morning. There was a man at the restaurant playing an acoustic guitar just like Alex had while they ate to promote the soothing and calm atmosphere.   
"Wow, he's playing some pretty good Frank Sinatra on acoustic." Alex said to herself as she sipped her vanilla milkshake. Ed was having a good time with her banana split.   
"Alex, you should ask him if you could play for a little while!" Ed suggested just loud enough for the other guitarist to hear.  
"You know how to play?" he asked her. She nodded sheepishly and tried to hide behind her sunglasses. He smiled and stood, removing the strap from his back. "Play us a tune then!" he said. The people dining seemed to agree, so she took the guitar and checked it to see if it was in tune or not. Ed recognized it when she strummed the strings the first time.  
"I wanna sing too!!" she exclaimed as she dashed to stand by Alex's side. Alex played and started to sing. It was the same song her and Ed sang back on the ship yesterday before Pidge and Jordan showed up; Fukai Mori. They sang the whole song in time, on tune, and overall perfectly, which made Alex cry since it made her think of Spike a little. As Alex ended the song, she received a standing ovation from all that heard her. Not only from the people sitting around and eating, but the people who were inside the restaurant and the people who were walking by on the street who stopped to listen. She took a brief bow and then returned to her table to finish her milkshake.   
"Thank you miss! That was really great!" The original guitarist complimented as he took it back and played it himself.   
"Wow Alex-san! That was really cool, your first time playing for a real audience!" Ed said excitedly. Alex shrugged her shoulders and sipped some more of the smooth, thick beverage.   
"Not really. When I used to be out on the streets I played for money in front of people who were walking past. More than this." She explained as she set the glass down on the table suddenly the sound of gunshots and explosions rang out up the street. Everyone began to panic and get under their tables, but Alex only reached for her gun. She saw two figures running in their direction, one being chased by the other. The one leading the other turned and took a few shots, producing a cloud of dust before the other and gaining a little time for himself. He continued to run down the street and as he drew closer, Alex's eyes grew wider. She saw the tousled brown mass of hair, the blue suit that was stained with blood and turned crimson in some places.   
"Alex-san, is that…" Ed began. Alex finished her sentence for her as he ran through the street almost passing her without noticing.  
"SPIKE!" She called out at the top of her lungs, wanting him to hear her no matter how far from her he was. He slowed to a limp and looked over to see her. He saw her eyes beginning to tear as he realized she was seeing him covered in his own blood.   
"Alex, get away from here! He'll kill you and Ed, just run!" He demanded with tears beginning to well in his eyes as well, he wished she didn't see him like this. Despite the warning, Alex jumped over the small fence and went to run for him. A gun fired and the next thing Alex saw was a bullet shooting straight through Spike's back.  
"NO!" She screamed as she ran to him. His body went limp and he fell to the ground. Blood slowly began to pool beneath him. She got to his side and turned him over to face her. blood was streaming from the corners of his mouth as his eyes slowly opened and saw her face.  
"Get out of here, he's after me and if he sees you, he'll come after you." He warned her. she put her hand over his mouth to hush him. The tears flowed heavily from her eyes now.  
"Shhh, don't speak. You'll be alright, okay? We'll get a doctor and have you fixed up in no time I promise!" she told him. The blood was really gushing from the bullet-hole, so she ripped off the enough of her shirt to use as something to stop the blood. She reached into the purse and pulled out her phone quickly and dialed the ship. It rang once and then someone picked up.  
"Hello?"  
"Jet! Come to the Shining Star Café on West 62nd street! I found Spike and if he doesn't get to a hospital soon, he'll die!" she screamed as she dust cloud finally cleared and a tall lanky figure emerged holding a very large gun. She didn't have to say anything else; Jet was already on his way. The tall man laughed as he sauntered closer.   
"Well, it looks like I nailed my target, but what's this, a pretty girl coming to his aide? This will not do if he lives!" he said as he came within 20 feet of Spike and Alex. She gave Spike a kiss on his warm lips and took one of the larger guns from inside of his coat. She stood with an angry grimace on her face and held her gun up and aimed it dead at him, arm straight and not the slightest shake.   
"I don't care who the hell you are or if you're famous or not. All I know is that you shot my love and I can't let you live now. If he dies I will hunt your family down and kill every last one of them. I swear by my father's grave I will." She bellowed angrily. The man only laughed at her as he came to only 10 feet in front of her.   
"And what makes you think you can hit me?" he asked her. He now stood right in front of her, her gun to his forehead, right between the eyes. "After all, you're nothing but a weak, good-for-nothing, slu-" he spat before she had enough of him. She squeezed the trigger and blew his brains out of his head. The people in the café screamed.  
"I'm not a weak good-for-nothing slut as you say. I am proud to be a mentally and physically strong female bounty hunter that can keep guys like you out of the picture and make the world a safer place without scumbags like you ruining it for everyone." She said as she stood over the body. After a few seconds, she let the gun fall from her hands and ran back to Spike. "Spike! Are you okay? Stay with me hun, don't leave me!" she begged and pleaded, trying to keep him conscious. His eyes opened slowly, she was losing him.  
"There was something I wanted to ask you last night when we went out, but…when this came up I decided to put it off until after I came back." he said with a cough. The blood was still streaming from his lips.  
"What is it Spike?" she asked as she leaned in close to kiss his cheek The roar of an engine sounded above as Jet's Hammerhead touched down on the street not too far from where they were on the ground. Spike couldn't say it loud enough and Alex couldn't hear the words coming out of his mouth.   
"Alex! I called an ambulance they should be here soon. How is the crazy bastard?" he asked as he ran over. He took one look at Spike and cringed. When Vincent ripped a hole in his chest back some time ago that looked like nothing compared to how he looked now. Spike looked like he had been through a meat grinder several times over. He was bloody, bruised, and beaten.   
"The guy you just killed, Alex, was the big bounty I went after last night." Spike told her. "I can't believe you took him out with one shot. Maybe I should leave these things up to you from now on, huh?" A loud siren drew close and an ambulance appeared. Jet flagged them down and called them over. They ran and brought a stretcher. One man spoke with Jet the entire time while three others loaded Spike onto the stretcher and into the ambulance. Spike quickly tossed Alex the keys to the Swordfish II.  
"I want to go with Spike!" Alex demanded.  
"We're sorry ma'am, but we only have enough room for the three of us. We can't let you come with us." One of the men told her as they shut the door on her. They drove off and left Jet and Alex standing on the street by themselves.  
"The hospital they're taking him to is only about five miles from here. He'll go into the ER as soon as he gets there and then they'll see what's going on." Jet explained as he took the keys from Alex and pushed a tiny button before handing them back to her. Ed bounded out from the restaurant.  
"Alex-san? What happened to Spi-Spi?" She asked her curiously. Tears silently slid down Alex's cheeks as she watched the ambulance disappear around a corner.  
"He got hurt. Let's get you back to the ship." She said to her placing a hand on the young girl's shoulder before speaking to Jet without looking at him. "I'm taking Ed back to the ship, I'll meet you back at the hospital." She said as the Swordfish II came around a corner. Ed Ran and picked up their bags from their table and jumped into the ship behind Alex. The cockpit shut and they flew off to the ship. No sooner than the two of them left, Jet took off in the Hammerhead and raced to the hospital. 


	40. The Damage was Done

A short time later, Alex was back in the Swordfish II racing towards the hospital. She took just enough time to drop Ed off, change her clothes, and get back out the door. She couldn't win though; she got blood all over her again since the cockpit of the ship was full of it. She hadn't taken notice of it before, but she found a small picture of her and Spike together stuck to a gauge on the dashboard. She remembered that day clearly. It was warm and the whole crew went for a picnic. Ed took the picture when she was giving Spike a brief kiss. How she hoped that Spike was alright so that they could go out and have another picnic like they did that day. The fast red ship pierced the low clouds as it raced time itself to get to the hospital.   
  
When she arrived at the large building, she parked the ship on the roof near Jet's Hammerhead and took the elevator down to the lobby.  
  
"Can you tell me where the waiting room for the ER is please?" she asked the nurse at the circulation desk. The older woman looked up at her.   
  
"May I ask for who you're here with whom is in the ER?" she asked. That's right! There were a couple different ones.  
  
"Uh, I don't know if his paperwork has been filled out, but his name is Spike Spiegel. He came in by ambulance badly beaten and almost dead." She explained. As Alex explained who she was looking for, the nurse's face became more and more upset.  
  
"My dear, I am so sorry. I saw that young man come in. Are you his sister?" she asked sympathetically. Alex shook her head.  
  
"No, I'm his girlfriend. I really need to know where he is, a man by the name of Jet Black came in with him if not right behind him." She said trying to smile to lighten the situation.   
  
"You poor dear. Give me a moment and I'll tell you where he is." She said as she began to type away at the computer. A short list of names popped up and she looked it over. "Ah yes, Mr. Spike Spiegel, 28 years old, correct?" Alex nodded. "If you go through these doors, and walk straight, you'll be in the ER lobby after about 50 feet. Jet Black is in Waiting Area #5, just look for room number five when you get there." She said.   
  
"Thank you ma'am." She smiled as she headed for the door.  
  
"Oh and miss? If there's anything you need, have a staff member page Clara Sokerd and I'll be right there." The woman said cheerfully. Alex nodded and passed through the doors. There was a huge lobby there with a door about 50 feet away like Clara said marked 'ER Waiting Area' over them. She walked through the waiting room and through those doors. When she entered, there was another circulation desk and a man sitting with a doctors white coat on.  
  
"Can I help you ma'am?" he asked her. She nodded.  
  
"Yes, I'm here with my boyfriend who is in the ER right now, his name is Spike Spiegel." She said. As Alex said Spike's name, the doctor cringed.  
  
"The man who came in a little while ago that was beat up real bad with all the gunshot wounds and the big one through his chest?" he asked her. She nodded. "Sweetheart, I'm just telling you now that patients that come in that look that bad, they don't live through the night." He said placing a hand on her shoulder. Alex went wide-eyed with fear, but looked away before she could cry.   
  
"Could you just tell me what room to go into?" she asked distraught.   
  
"I'm sorry, room number five is right over there. I believe that a Mr. Jet Black is in there already." He said pointing to a wooden door a few feet away. She looked over to see the lights on and a 'Do Not Disturb' sign on the handle.  
  
"Thank you sir." She said as she walked over to the door. She twisted the handle and pushed the door open to receive quite the warm welcome from Jet.  
  
"I THOUGHT I SAID…oh, its you Alex."  
  
"Is that how you greet a friend, let alone Spike's girlfriend?" Alex said as tears found their way to her eyes. Jet ran over to her and hugged her, holding her close.   
  
"I'm sorry Alex." He apologized. "I talked to the doctor when Spike first went in. He said it didn't look good at all. They said he might not make it to tomorrow." He said to the sobbing girl.  
  
"I can't believe this time he's really going to die. After all he's been through, you'd think this was nothing for him." She cried. He helped her to a couch that was set against a wall. He let her cry into his shoulder while they both reminisced back upon the good days and near death experiences that he lived through. About 20 minutes passed before the door opened and a doctor stepped inside with a folder and a clipboard. Jet and Alex stood as she entered.  
  
"Hello, my name is Dr. Giasoda. You must be Spike's crewmates and you must be the lucky girlfriend he was ranting about before we sedated him." She smiled at Alex.   
  
"Yes." She nodded.  
  
"I'm afraid the news is far from good. There's the major bullet-hole clear through his chest, but the only good part about it is that it missed his heart by a hair; he's very lucky for that. Otherwise, there's the major concussion, punctured lung, cracked and broken ribs and bones, and internal bleeding everywhere. He's a real mess, but if you have the patience to let us work with him, we'll do everything possible to keep him alive." She informed.   
  
"Doctor, I've hear that patients that are in the condition Spike is in don't usually make it to the morning. Do you think he has the chance?" Alex asked. Giasoda adjusted her glasses.  
  
"To tell you the truth, the odds are against him at this point. However, I have been proven wrong several times when saying that people will die before the next morning." She said trying not to sway too much in one direction to give too much hope. "At this point, I'd be ready for anything. You can stay here if you wish, but you also have the option of going back home and getting some rest and clean clothes."  
  
"I'll stay." Alex insisted. "I'll stay by Spike no matter what." She said.   
  
"Alex, I think…" Jet began.  
  
"No, I'm staying and that's that." She said glaring at him angrily.   
  
"Fine." Jet sighed. "I'm going to head back to the ship and get some things. I'll pick you up some fresh clothes and food, okay?"  
  
"Thanks a lot Jet." She said with a hug.   
  
"Yea, yea. Anything for the girl of my buddy's dreams." He said as he walked out of the room. A young man about Alex's age came into the room.  
  
"Doctor, we need you in Mr. Spiegel's room immediately." He said with urgency. She nodded and followed him out but stopped to say something to Alex.   
  
"Don't worry Alex, Spike will be fine." She said supportively just before she left the room leaving Alex alone. She flopped down on the couch and turned on the TV that was on a stand hanging from the ceiling. She got bored flipping channels, so she pulled her phone out of her purse and dialed up Pidge to let him know what was going on. As she started to dial the number, it rang.  
  
"Hello?" she asked as she accepted the call.  
  
"Did you want me to bring your guitar too? I figured that you'd want it with you there." Jet asked her. She smiled happily; she was going to say something to him about bringing it.  
  
"Yes, can you? And be sure to grab my black hakamas, red kimono, and a white tank top." She said as she recalled her most comfortable, feel-good outfit.  
  
"Alright, I'll be back in about an hour. I'm gonna make some food for us to eat later on since we'll both be spending the night."  
  
"You want to stay? I'll stay by myself Jet, you don't have to stay if you don't want to."  
  
"I want to, besides, if something happens to Spike, who's going to be there with you if the news is bad?" he insisted. He had a point.   
  
"Okay, see you soon then Jet." She said as she hung up. She then dialed Pidge's number.  
  
"Pidge Bordeaux, racer and restorer." He answered.  
  
"Pidge? It's Alex." She said wiping a tear from her cheek.   
  
"Alex! What's up? You sound upset, everything okay?"  
  
"I'm in the hospital, Spike got messed up real bad and they don't think he'll make it through the night here. I just wanted to call and let you know what was going on since you're a close friend." She said sadly. A loud bang came from Pidge's side of the phone followed by a scraping sound.  
  
"Alex, I'll be right there. What hospital are you guys at?" he said worriedly.   
  
"No, Pidge I don't think it would be a good idea for anyone else to come down here. It's going to be Jet and I spending the night here, and Ed's back on the ship there. If anything, send Jordan over there to hang out with her until tomorrow morning." She asked. There was a brief pause and then the sound of Pidge moving the phone.  
  
"JORDAN! GET DOWN HERE!" He screamed. "I'll send him over now, if you need anything Alex, don't hesitate to call, alright? I'm only a ring away." he reassured.   
  
"Thanks Pidge, you're the greatest." She said as she started to cry some more.  
  
"Ma and I'll be praying for him, okay? Just don't get too worried sweetheart." He said.  
  
"Alright Pidge, I'll call you later, maybe not until tomorrow." She said as she bid farewell and hung up the phone. She sat there and flipped through the TV channels some more until she came to Big Shot on the bounty hunters' channel. All they were talking about was the killing of the giant bounty worth 80 million. They were looking for the person who killed him and offered a phone number for the person to call.   
  
"It was a blond girl about 20 years old or so with blue eyes who was with a red-headed child." Judy was saying. Alex knew they could use the money, but she didn't feel like calling. Instead, she stored the number in her cell phone and turned the channel off. She came across the music video channel and started to sing along with the songs that came on. This passed about 45 minutes or so until Jet returned with a bunch of things. He had her guitar case in one hand and one of her bags under that arm, and two bags under the other.  
  
"I brought your stuff. They questioned me about it at first, but then they let me through after I explained myself." He said as he set it all on the ground.   
  
"I talked to Pidge, they'll be praying for him." She said as she opened her bag and pulled out the clothes she wanted to sleep in. "Right after you left, one of the assistants came in and requested the doctor in Spike's room immediately." Jet looked up at her, only to see her wrapped up in pulling out the right clothes. She sniffled and a tear fell onto the red silk kimono.   
  
"Alex, I'm sure he's…" he began, but the door opened and the doctor once again entered. It was now coming around to dinnertime and the both of them were hungry. Alex looked up and stood to face the doctor as she wiped her tears away.   
  
"How is he doctor?" she asked with a slight waver in her voice. She removed her glasses with a sigh and put them in the front pocket of her white coat. Alex could feel the news coming.  
  
"There was more damage done than initially thought. It looks as if he'd been through several gunfights in the past." She said. Alex glared angrily at Jet.  
  
"You didn't tell her what we do?" Jet was taken by surprise.  
  
"I didn't think it was necessary!" he said. "I thought all the bullets were removed!"  
  
"It's not the bullets, there were none other than the ones from this fight, but all of the damage done has opened up old wounds and has made matters worse." Alex started to cry silently. "We're trying as hard as we can to stabilize him, but the harder we try, it seems the more damage we do. It's been estimated that he only has five to six hours left in him." Alex sank to the floor. She wasn't ready for that news, it hit her like a ton of bricks. 


	41. Emotional Proposal

As her knee hit the floor, the wound split open and the blood began to flow out again. Dr. Giasoda noticed the bleeding and called one of the assistants in to get her stitched up right away. it was the same assistant that came to get the doctor in the first place. He took Alex off, leaving Jet with the doctor in the room alone.  
  
"Is there something you can give her to calm her down?" he asked her slowly. He was trying to fight back tears himself.  
  
"We have a light sedative that would just make her a little out of it, but not totally unconscious. I'll bring it to you and she can take it when she comes back." she said as she pulled her glasses out and put them back on. She went to leave when Jet stopped her.  
  
"Do you honestly give him any chance that he'll survive?" She was silent for a moment.  
  
"The way it looks, he has a snowball's chance in hell, but who knows, there could be a freezer just beyond the flames." She said as she turned and walked out. Jet slammed his fist into the wall with a loud, echoing bang. If the wall weren't solid concrete, he would've made a hole the size of a dinner plate.  
  
Not long after that, Alex returned to the room with her knee stitched shut and cleaned up a little to find Jet sitting back with his harmonica in one of the more comfortable chairs. She hobbled in and flopped down nearby with a sigh.   
  
"What did the doctor have to say after I left?" she asked.  
  
"Not much. Just telling me again how long they expect." He said as he took a breath and began to play again. She sighed again and let the tears roll down her cheek. The hours ticked by slowly, like an eternity. Alex was bordering on unconsciousness, as was Jet when the doctor entered the room again almost seven hours later. Jet stood quickly, but Alex was too tired to care. Dr. Giasoda entered as emotionless as ever, not telling whether he was still alive or dead. Alex looked up at her with glistening, bloodshot eyes as she removed her glasses. After a moment, she began to grin.  
  
"Mr. Spiegel is a very stubborn man." She smiled. "We managed to get him stabilized and he's asleep right now in his room." Alex smiled and tears began to flow freely as she slowly stood and Jet hugged her tight. "Just before he fell unconscious, he made an unusual request though."  
  
"Don't tell me he asked for a drink." Jet said. Giasoda shook her head and then looked at Alex.  
  
"He requested that his beautiful girlfriend sleep in his room with him tonight. He was very stubborn about getting that point across also." She said. Jet and Alex looked at each other.   
  
"He said that?" she asked the doctor. Giasoda nodded.  
  
"You'd better go. You know how he gets when he doesn't get what he wants." Jet smiled. She nodded and walked with the doctor out of the room.   
  
"You're a very lucky girl to have such an amazing man you know." She said as she led Alex down a few halls. Alex only had socks on her feet, but the thud of the doctor's footsteps echoed through the hallways until they came to a door with the number '5' marked on it.  
  
"Is he okay though? I mean, he's not totally mutilated or anything, right?" she asked as Giasoda wrapped her hand around the doorknob. She shook her head.  
  
"Not at all, the only incision we made was in his abdomen." She smiled as she twisted the knob and the door swung open silently. The room was dim, but Alex could see spike lying in a bed, surrounded by a few beeping machines that were hooked up to his body in one way or another. His face was partially bandaged where the cuts and gashes had been stitched shut and covered with gauze and there was an IV needle in his arm. "There's a chair on the other side of the bed, near the window. You can pull it close to the bed and sleep there if you'd like." She said as she led Alex into the room and then stepped back out.  
  
"Okay, thank you so very, very much doctor Giasoda." She said.   
  
"It's my job. Pleasant dreams dear." She said as she pulled the door shut and left leaving Alex in the room with the sleeping Spike and a handful of those beeping machines. She walked around to the foot of the bed and looked at him. He looked like he was in pain and upset, as he lie there unconscious. She walked around to find the chair and she pulled it up right beside the bed. She sat down in it and leaned on the bed itself, right next to Spike. She took his one hand with both of hers and despite the sensation of the blood pulsing through his veins she was still uneasy whether he was going to live or die. She put her head down on the mattress next to him and let go of his hand.  
  
"Spike, it was all my fault you're like this." She cried. "If I hadn't called you today while you were trying to get away, you wouldn't be here now. I should've known better!" her tears soaked into the blankets he was lying under. "I can't believe that you survived something like this, if anyone, I should be the one laying here on the brink of death." She continued to sob out loud with her head buried into the bed at his side. "I don't deserve someone like you. You should have someone better." As she continued to cry, she felt something. His hand had picked up and was stroking her head gently, running his fingers through her hair slowly. She looked up at his face to see his eyes just barely cracked open and a weak smile on his lips. Her tears fell faster when she saw him looking at her.   
  
"Alex…If anything," he began slowly. His voice was very raspy and hushed. "If anything, I don't deserve an angel like you who looks after me like you do." His words took an eternity to get to her ears. She kept her head down on the bed and let him continue to run his fingers through her hair. This was a moment she wished could last forever. She was so upset and he was in so much physical pain that the sensation of pain in one way or another was mutual.   
  
"Spike, it hurts to see you lying there like that." She said as he wiped a tear from her face.  
  
"You think you're hurting, look at me!" he said showing her his bandaged body. "Not only do I have to sit here in pain from these damned cuts, but sitting here and watching you cry hurts just as much if not more." He said as he continued to run his fingers through her hair over and over.   
  
"I just don't think it's fair that you're the one who has to lie in this bed because I distracted you and almost got you killed." She sniffled as she placed her hand over his. He shook his head.  
  
"To tell you the truth, I'm glad I was almost killed. It made me think about how I live my life and the things I should change that would probably make me live longer." He explained. "Like going after huge bounties all alone like I did, that was really stupid of me. I should've at least took you or Jet with me."  
  
"Spike, what are you saying?" she asked him curiously with tears in her eyes still. With a sigh, Spike's reply surprised her.  
  
"I'm considering giving up bounty hunting."  
  
"What?" she couldn't believe what he was saying. "Why? You love it!" he shook his head.  
  
"But it's taking a hell of a toll on my body. One more mess like this and I can guarantee I won't live through it. The bout with Mad Pierot, then the mess with Vincent, and on top of that being left for dead after my fight with Vicious, it's a miracle I'm not dead yet." He said as a tear was brought to his eye as he recalled the painful memories.  
  
"Spike, bounty hunting is your life. What will you do if you give it up? What will you do for money?" she asked becoming a little frustrated.   
  
"I don't know, I guess I could teach self defense classes or something for kids and adults." He said trying to work things out in his head.  
  
"You hate kids, remember?" she reminded him.   
  
"Oh yea." He sighed. There was a short pause. "Well, I can find something to do. I can sell something or something." He said slowly thinking of what he was saying as he was saying it and realizing how stupid he sounded. She wanted to laugh, but she couldn't find it in her anywhere. He wanted to give up what he did all his life because of all of this and for her.   
  
"Spike, you just have to be more careful is all. If you didn't rush out all alone and I went with you, things like this wouldn't happen anymore. We're supposed to be a team remember?" she told him as she took his hands. She was extra careful not to jostle the IV needle.  
  
"No, it's time I give it up and start thinking about the rest of my life. I don't want to have to rely on hunting people down for money to get by. I want to do something else I can enjoy and make money at the same time. You always wanted to play your guitar and sing, why don't we just leave the bounty hunting behind and start a band or group or something? I'll play the guitar, Jet has the keyboards and a couple other instruments covered, and Ed has the drums." He suggested. She didn't want to have any part of it.  
  
"I don't understand why you're doing this. You lived for bounty hunting, now you're giving it up at the drop of a hat. What's gotten into you? You were always in it for the thrill of the chase and the huge reward in the end, but now you just want to run away from it with your tail between your legs like a scared dog? I don't understand Spike, did you hit you're head on something or lose too much blood?" Spike shut his eyes, shook his head, and smiled weakly.  
  
"No, I just think it's time for me to settle down is all." Alex looked at him like he was psychotic, which she thought he probably was.  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"Back when I told you I had something to ask you before the ambulance arrived, I guess you didn't hear me since you didn't answer." She looked at him even more strangely now. He began to shift around in his bed.  
  
"Spike! What are you doing? Lie down!" She told him as he started to climb out of the bed. His feet hit the floor and he stood wearily. He reached into a drawer in a table beside the bed and pulled something out, hidden in his palm. Using the bed and the arms of the chair to make his motions slow and easy, he sank to his knees in front of her. He took her one hand and pulled her to sit in the chair facing him. With painful groans, he managed to bring his one leg up so he was only down on one knee. The hand with the object in it was leaning on the bent knee. Alex started to cry as his eyes met hers.  
  
"Alexis Maria Roselynne Bondora, will you marry me?" he asked as his eyes began to fill with tears of mixed emotions. She sat there speechless as he revealed to her a tiny platinum colored ring with three sparkling stones set on it. He knelt there on the floor awaiting the answer from his beautiful, yet stunned, female companion anxiously despite the pain that was racing through his body. 


	42. Hidden Agendas

Alex sat there, not so much as breathing because she was so stunned.  
  
"Spike I," she barely managed to squeeze out. He placed his hand on her knee.  
  
"Before you say anything, I just want to tell you how much I love you and I know I want this. Yesterday when you woke up and me and Jet were out, we were out picking out the ring. So don't go and tell me I'm crazy and not thinking straight, I know exactly what I'm saying and what I want." He told her, as he looked her dead in the eye. Her tears flowed freely and silently as he took her hand and readied to slide the ring onto her finger. She could see his eyes glistening with tears also, knowing he was hoping for the yes from her. But was it a good idea? What about Blade? If he found out, what would happen? Would he give up on her or continue until she was his? What about the rest of the crew; Jet, Ed, and heaven forbid if Faye found out before they actually married if she said yes. But she loved Spike with all her heart. She knew that he was probably the only man she could trust and she knew he loved her for who she was and not just some pretty face. Was he genuine? Was he serious? She looked him over once and realized that he was doing all of this for her. He wanted to give up bounty hunting to spend his life with her and ensure he'd come home alive every night to her. The corners of her lips tugged towards her ears as she began to smile.  
  
"Spike, I'll marry you, I love you." She said with a tearful smile. He smiled happily and slid the ring onto her finger with both hands shaking nervously and excitedly. When it was on securely, she held it out and looked at it. After a quick glimpse, she wrapped her arms around her new fiancée and held him close. He groaned in pain.  
  
"Not too tight sweetheart, I just survived a near death experience and I need to recover." He said as she backed up a little.  
  
"I'm sorry, I'm just so happy is all. I can't believe this is all happening. Especially to someone like me when just about everything else in my life has gotten screwed up so bad in the past." She said as she let him go. He smiled at her as he stood. He began to push himself back into bed.  
  
"I'm just glad to see that you're happy and you want the same for the two of us." he said with a groan as he slid back and lay down. "But I'm still thinking about dropping bounty hunting."  
  
"Nonsense, all you need is a break from it. You've been doing it every day for the past god only knows how many years. We'll wait until after we get married to get back into it, alright?" she bargained. He looked at her with one eyebrow slightly cocked and a smirk playing across his lips.  
  
"If you insist sweetheart." He sighed. Spike knew he could never win that battle. She'd always find something to prove herself right, but that's what he loved about her. Her strength, her emotions, her ambitions, and her beauty made him feel like the most important person in the world. Her smile lit up a room; her touch was like heaven on earth. He took her hand as he rolled over onto his side.  
  
"I'll be Mrs. Spike Spiegel for the rest of my life. What a dream come true it is." She sighed. Spike brought her hand to his lips and kissed it softly.  
  
"And I'll be yours for the rest of ours." He said quietly. They were both exhausted and needed their rest, so Alex slept in the chair, her head lying on the bed with her hand being held by Spike's. It was somewhat a fairytale developing between the two of them, one that was sure to ensure them living happily ever after.  
  
The next morning, a familiar pair of voices awoke Alex. They were entering the room together, almost side by side.  
  
"So when do you expect Spike to out of the hospital, let alone out of the bed?" Jet asked.   
  
"It really depends on how fast he heals and recovers, but for now we just need to keep him from moving around too much and damaging the reparations we made to his body so far." Dr. Giasoda answered with a slight sense of happiness in her voice. Alex opened her eyes and looked up at the two of them. As they laid eyes on her, the both of them smiled.  
  
"Well good morning sunshine, how did we sleep?" Jet asked her. She smiled and then placed her head back down on the bed beside Spike. Spike could feel the movement and hear the sound of people speaking, so he opened his eyes and looked around.  
  
"Hey there Jet." He said as his eyes fell upon his partner. He tried to flash his witty smile, but it didn't work this time.   
  
"You stupid bastard! You almost fucking died last night and all you have to say is 'Hey there Jet'? I don't think so!" he practically roared. Spike only smiled.  
  
"You know damn well why I couldn't die just yet." Spike said softly as he ran his fingers through Alex's hair. She just lay there as she started to fall back to sleep. Jet looked at him curiously for a second until Spike smiled more obviously. Then it hit him.  
  
"You didn't!" he said doubting the injured man before him. Spike nodded and picked up Alex's hand to show him the shiny ring on her finger.   
  
"Mr. Spiegel, you proposed to the young woman? When was this?" the doctor asked with a stern tone in her voice.  
  
"Last night." He shrugged. You could hear a pin drop with the silence. Alex chuckled quietly as she could picture the look on Jet's face. She looked up to see if she was right. She was. Jet's eyes were wide with shock, his jaw was on the floor, and his one eyebrow was slightly cocked. Oddly enough, the doctor's reaction was almost the same.  
  
"Spike, you were conscious enough to pop the question?" Jet asked. Spike nodded.  
  
"Mr. Spiegel! I specifically told you that you weren't allowed to so much as move an inch last night and you needed to stay still! I know I put that ring in the drawer beside your bed, how did she get it if you don't mind me asking?" Dr. Giasoda asked. Spike grinned.  
  
"I reached over, opened the drawer, got down on one knee, and asked her to marry me? You want the specifics?" he asked. The doctor groaned.  
  
"It's a wonder you aren't dead yet!" she said frustrated as she turned and walked out of the room, taking a clipboard with her. "I'll be back in about an hour." Spike shook his head.   
  
"Sweetheart, I just need to go get some coffee and breakfast. I'll be back in a little bit, okay?" Alex said as she sat back in the chair with a yawn. He gave her the most sad puppy-dog eyes expression possible as she began to laugh.  
  
"Come back soon, alright?" he said as she stood and stretched. She leaned in over the bed and kissed him softly on his lips. She began to pull away when he spoke. "Come on, like I could feel that!"  
  
"You're injured and restricted from a lot of activity hun," she scolded. Once again, he hit her with the puppy-dog eyes and she couldn't help but cave. She leaned in again and pressed her lips to his, kissing him passionately.  
  
"Jesus Christ, get a room!" Jet moaned.  
  
"Incase you haven't noticed, we're in a room Jet." Spike said as Alex laughed.  
  
"I'll be back soon dear." She said as she turned and walked out.  
  
Earlier that morning, across the city, a silver-haired man met with a long-haired woman wearing white robes.  
  
"I know you worked with my father and there was a great deal of… tension between the two of you, but I assure you I'm not like he was." Blade began.  
  
"You say you aren't, but have you looked in a mirror recently?" she asked. The voice was borderline masculine. Wispy strands of purple hair hung in her, or maybe his eyes as they glared down Blade.   
  
"I look like him only because I am his son. You of all people should know about his social life." He smirked. The robed person cringed as the twisted smirk crossed his face. God, he looked too much like his cold-blooded father. Anyway, I have a retrieval mission for you Grencia Mars Elijah Guo Eckener." 


	43. A BIG surprise

Alex wandered happily to the waiting room where she found her bag of clothes and stuff. She began to rifle through it to pull out a pair of jeans and a tank top to wear so she could step out of the hospital for breakfast and to buy her fiancée flowers. Wow, her fiancée. She never imagined referring to someone as her fiancée, let alone finding Mr. Right period. She quickly changed her clothes and pocketed her money, her gun, and her phone before pulling on her long black coat. Damn she loved wearing it. She couldn't not wear it; people would see her gun and the police, because of it, would probably confront her. After running a brush through her hair quickly, she sighed happily and walked out the door of the waiting room. The doctors knew who she was, or at least who she was there for, and greeted her happily as she walked out of the hospital.   
  
"What a day. I can't believe that things are going so perfectly. It's like a dream come true." She said happily as she walked down the sidewalk with the sun on her face and the slight breeze in her hair. Birds sang, people were chattering happily, and even the bums on the corners were smiling. How bizarre was this? She came to a small café near a bookstore and decided that she could have breakfast and read a newspaper at the same time. After buying a daily paper at the bookstore, she walked over to the café and took a seat and waited for the waiter or waitress to take her order. As she sat reading, she realized that her and Spike's little adventure made an appearance on the second page. There was even a picture of her leaning at Spike's side trying to make sure he was alright. She giggled and read what it said. It blew up the issue that the three of them were bounty hunters and saved the city and some other blown up heroic story…quite interesting in her opinion. The waiter stepped up to her with a pad of paper and a pen, how old-fashioned. Now a days people are used to using handheld computers instead of the pen and paper.  
  
"What can I get you this morning ma'am?" he asked. His long dark purple hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail with a strand of black leather, stylish! He smiled at her showing just a hint of his pearly white teeth.  
  
"I'd like a French Vanilla Cappuccino and I guess a chocolate chip muffin." She said as she glanced over the menu and then watched him scribble on his pad of paper.   
  
"I'll have to check on the muffin, we may not have any right now." He said.  
  
"Oh, well if you don't have one, I'll take a croissant instead." She said. The waiter scribbled on the paper again.   
  
"Alright ma'am, I'll be back shortly with your order." He smiled politely. His blue eyes sparkled as he continued smiling as he walked away. Alex sat back and read her paper with a contented sigh.  
  
"So what made you do it Spike? I mean, force yourself conscious just to ask her then and there last night?" Jet asked curiously. Spike shrugged his shoulders.  
  
"I don't know, I just wanted to do it at the right time with the right mood in the air I guess. Last night just felt…perfect." He said dreamily. Jet sighed.  
  
"Always a lady-pleaser, that you are. So romantic."   
  
"I hope you're not hitting on me now Jet, not only am I engaged, I'm not like that." He grinned. Despite him being injured, Jet smacked Spike's head.   
  
"Damn fool, always screwin' around! You idiot. I swear, I'm about to ask Alex why she even said yes to a moron like you. First you go off after a bounty that nearly killed you, then you straight up act like a dumbass, now what? It's a wonder she said yes to you."  
  
"Calm down Jet," Spike said as he rubbed his head. "I've been noticing that someone around here seems to have the hots for you anyway." He grinned. Jet stared at him wide-eyed.  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?" he asked.  
  
"That doctor Giasoda, I've seen her eyin' you up!" he said with a smile.  
  
"You're pullin' my chain you damned fool." Jet grunted. Spike shook his head.  
  
"Nope, she's been checkin' you out all this time! Keep an eye on her the next time she comes in the room if you don't believe me!"   
  
"Those damned drugs are screwing with your head." Jet groaned.  
  
"They ain't drugs, they's imagination enhancers!" Spike said goofily. Jet smacked Spike again.  
  
"She doesn't like me and you're a damned idiot."   
  
"1,000 woolongs says she stutters when she comes in the next time while you're in here." Spike said slyly. Jet eyed him.  
  
"Deal." He said as he shook his hand. "Now about your woman."  
  
"What about her?"  
  
"Why her of all people? Especially after Julia, I thought you said never again?" Jet asked. Spike thought a moment before smiling.  
  
"I always loved a girl that could kick my ass." He said with a cheesy grin a mile wide. Jet simply smacked him again.  
  
"Pardon me miss," the waiter said as he stepped back out on the sunny patio. She looked up at him as he placed her cappuccino on the table in front of her. "We have neither the muffin, nor the croissant. Could you come inside and pick something out of the case that we do have?" he asked politely, seeming sorry for the fact they didn't have what she wanted.  
  
"Sure, no problem." she said as she folded her paper and stood. She followed him towards an alley before getting a weird feeling. "Is this the way inside?"   
  
"It's the service entrance right through the kitchen, I figured it'd be easier." He said pushing a friendly smile. It seemed alright, so she followed. He led her about half way down the alley before he spoke again. "If you don't mind me asking, what's your name?" he asked as he glanced back over his shoulder at her.  
  
"Oh, Alex. I'm not seeing anyone though." She said.  
  
"Really?" he asked sounding interested.  
  
"No, I mean I'm engaged." She grinned shyly. He slowed down.  
  
"What's his name if you once again don't mind me asking?"  
  
"Spike, Spike Spiegel." She said. He stopped dead in his tracks. "Is there something wrong? Do you know him?" she asked.  
  
"No, it sounded familiar, but I don't know him." The waiter said as he continued to walk her through the alley. They walked past a door labeled 'Service Entrance' and Alex began to wonder.  
  
"Where are we going?" she asked. "We just passed the service entrance door." she said becoming frustrated and nervous. They came to the dead end of the alley where the waiter whirled and faced Alex.  
  
"We're going for a little ride." He grinned. Before she could pull her gun, he grabbed both her wrists with his one hand and held a gun at her forehead with the other.  
  
"I'll scream!" she threatened. He only grinned.  
  
"Go ahead, no one will hear you. That's why I brought you all the way back here." he said smartly. "Even if you make a move, I'll pull the trigger before you can get far, let alone hit me. I fought on Titan with a father of a friend of yours. After all, 30 million woolongs to get you to Blade McGowan seems pretty easy money to me." Alex looked up at the man in horror.  
  
"Who are you?" she said. He holstered the gun and bound her hands with duct tape before slapping a piece over her mouth.  
  
"Call me Gren." He smiled as he lifted her on his shoulder and carried her to a waiting van. He threw her in the back after taking her purse, gun, and phone. As he settled into the driver's seat, he browsed the numbers in the phone and decided to call 'Spike Cell'.  
  
Back at the hospital, the two men were waiting for the doctor to come in to see who would win their little bet.  
  
"She does not!" Jet argued.  
  
"She does too!" Spike retorted.  
  
"Does not!"  
  
"Does too!"  
  
"Does not!"  
  
"Does too!" the battle raged for about five more minutes when finally Spike's cell phone rang from the drawer beside the bed. "Gimmie!" he demanded as Jet pulled it from the drawer.   
  
"It's Alex, you're sweetie pie!" he teased before tossing the phone to him. Spike pushed the talk button and held it to his ear.  
  
"Hey sweetheart!" he greeted.  
  
"Sorry to burst your bubble, but your sweetheart is being held hostage." A voice came through the phone. It was a mans voice and spike swore he'd heard it before.  
  
"Who is this?!" he demanded as he sat straight up in his bed. he didn't care about his wounds or how much pain he was in.  
  
"All I can tell you is that with me she's in safe hands. With Blade she'll be in more danger than you could imagine." 


	44. I'm The One Keeping You Alive!

With that, the phone clicked and the signal died. Spike stared at the phone of a while in shock and then threw it angrily across the room against the wall, instantly shattering into several small pieces.   
  
"Spike, what's going on?" Jet asked as Spike's eyebrow began to twitch and he hid his face in his hands. Behind them he was biting his lip and fighting back tears. God damn it, he had just asked her to be his wife and this happens. What did it mean? Who did it? Who was that man on the phone? Why did his voice sound so familiar?  
  
"Someone's got her." he said just loud enough to hear some sort of sound. Jet couldn't hear what he was saying since his face was still in his hands and he was talking in low tones.  
  
"What?"  
  
"SOMEONE KIDNAPPED HER!!!" Spike roared. Jet damn near fell back out of his chair. Spike was already trying to twist himself to get out of the bed and had thrown the covers off. "I'm going after him Jet. Whoever did this is going to pay. And I'm going to kill that no good son of a bitch Blade McGowan while I'm at it!" he roared as he swung his feet around.   
  
"Spike!" Jet yelled as Spike began to pull all the electrodes off of his body and the tubes and needles from his arms. The machines beeped furiously at him, which angered him even more as he gingerly stood on his bare feet. the door burst open and Dr. Giasoda rushed in panting and shocked at the sight of her near-death patient to be standing and pulling everything off of himself.  
  
"Mr. Spiegel!" she said alarmed at the sight. He wobbled over to the dresser across from his bed and pulled out a fresh pair of clothes that were being saved for the day he was allowed to leave, not the day he forced himself to go searching for his fiancée.   
  
"What doc?" he grumbled angrily as he ripped off the hospital gown and stood naked facing away from her trying to pull on his clothes without losing balance.   
  
"You just barely survived the night and you're out of bed! What is wrong with you?!" she practically screamed. A few of the nurses were peeking through the doorway to see what was going on.  
  
"Dr. Giasoda, I just got a phone call from a kidnapper telling me he's holding my fiancée hostage. I think I'll be checking out today." He said as he got his boxers and pants on.  
  
"But your treatment! It's not complete!" she argued.   
  
"It's not going to change his mind how much you try to compromise with him doc, he's going and that's that. Once he makes up his mind, ain't nothin gonna change it." Jet told her as he crossed his arms and waited for him to dress. After Spike had pulled the shirt on and the coat, he went through the drawers to make sure he didn't forget anything and grabbed the key to the Swordfish II that, luckily, Alex hadn't taken with her.   
  
"G' bye doc, we'll be in touch I suppose." He said as he walked out the doorway and towards the staircase to the roof. Jet began to follow when the doctor stopped him.  
  
"Mr. Black, if anything happens to Mr. Spiegel, here's my number. Available 24/7 alright?" she said as she handed him a small business card.  
  
"Sure, I'll probably call after everything settles down to get him a follow-up appointment or something I guess." He said as he began to walk out the door. The doctor stopped him again.  
  
"Maybe we could uh…go out for coffee or dinner sometime?" she stuttered nervously. He cheeks flushed a rosy pink. The same shade overcame Jet's face in a matter of split seconds.  
  
"Why sure. I guess that would be an idea." He said with a smile.  
  
"Great, I'll uh… I'll be hearing from you then?"  
  
"Yeah, sure!" Jet said with a smile and a wave as he ran off after Spike. The doctor sighed contentedly and blushed some more as Jet disappeared up the staircase.  
  
Spike was waiting on the roof beside the door when Jet finally arrived. Spike grinned as he presented Jet with an open palm. Jet grumbled as he quickly shoved ten 100-woolong bills into his waiting open hand.  
  
"What'd I tell you?" he said as he stuffed them in his pocked and headed to the Swordfish.   
  
"Yea, yea, yea, get your ass back to the Bebop." He grumbled as he ran for the Hammerhead. In a few moments, both ships were airborne and racing back to the larger ship.  
  
"SOMEONE HELP! GET ME OUTTA HERE!!!" Alex was screaming from the back of the van that was racing through the city streets.  
  
"For god's sake, shut up girl! I'm the one keeping you alive!" Gren roared back to her as he made a sharp turn. She was thrown against a wall of the van with a grunt.  
  
"What do you mean you're keeping me alive? You're the one who kidnapped me!" she yelled angrily. Another sharp turn and oof.  
  
"I was sent to kidnap you, not the mastermind behind it!" he said as he rolled to a stop slowly and he killed the engine.  
  
"By who then?" she growled. Her blond hair was strewn about on the floor all around her head.  
  
"Blade McGowan sent me to kidnap you. He wanted me to bring you back to him so he could make you his wife and dare I say bare a child for him." He said as he opened his door and got out. This Gren had to be lying; Blade wouldn't do something like that! But then again, he was the leader of the Red Dragon now and there were all sorts of crazy rules. Was Gren lying or telling the truth? The side door to the van slid open swiftly and she saw him standing there holding her phone in one hand and his other hand resting on the door. He had a serious expression on his face at first, but then it turned to a grin. "What I wouldn't give to have a woman as beautiful as you… or a man as handsome as Spike." He smiled.  
  
"You're sick, you really are." She scowled. He shook his head and picked her up like he was her new groom and was carrying her through the door of their house. He pulled her out of the van and started to carry her towards a large, dilapidated building. It was like one of those old plantation houses from the southern United States back in the 1800's. The old white paint was almost totally chipped away, the shudders were hanging off and the grounds were overgrown badly. The brick walk was about a foot wide before the growth covered it. Alex could easily knock him out, but she wanted to know more about what he was saying…if it was true or not about what he said about Blade. He walked straight up to the large doors and pushed himself through after unlocking the one door. the first room she saw was a drab gray color. It was small and dusty and felt like on one had been there in years.   
  
"Welcome to my home. Pardon the appearance." Gren said as he pushed through to another room, this one much more elaborate and decorated. The furniture was beautiful and looked extremely comfortable. Gren put Alex down and took the ropes off of her wrists. "If you promise not to run off, I'll take the ropes off your feet." all Alex could do was look around the great room. She nodded as she caught sight of a huge chandelier in the next room.  
  
"How did you get all of this? From the outside it looks so rundown and trashy!" she said meaning it as a compliment. Gren wrinkled his nose.  
  
"Remind me the next time I see where you live to make likewise comments." He grunted.  
  
"Oh no, I meant it in a good way, really." She said as he knelt down and cut the ropes away from her ankles. He tossed them away and stood beside her.  
  
"You're not running, I'm impressed." He said as he walked towards a large couch and flopped down. He picked up a remote control and pushed a button, which made a slit open in the ceiling, and a screen begin to drop.  
  
"You said Blade was after me, I want to hear what you have to say." She said as she walked over and took a seat near him. He glanced over at her. Gren's eyes reminded Alex of Spike's, but blue. Gren looked at her for a minute, it was like a staring contest between the two. After about a minute of silence and staring each other dead in the eyes, Gren pushed a button on the remote and the screen rose back into the ceiling again.  
  
"Sit down, get comfortable, and where do I begin?" 


	45. Someone's got a GOOD plan, right?

Spike and Jet sped back to the ship as fast as their ships could go. In no time at all, they were both landing on the deck and pulling into the hangar. As Spike ran for the door to get into the ship, he glanced over at Alex's still-in-pieces ship. He held his emotions back as he passed through the doorway and down the steps with Jet close behind. They walked quickly through the corridors into the living area. Spike was surprisingly quick on his feet despite just leaving the hospital. As they entered the area, they saw an older boy tied to a chair and Ed playing with his lengthy hair while Ein sat on his lap.  
  
"Jordan! Good to see ya buddy!" Spike said in passing on his way to the room where he kept his guns. As he got inside, he could hear Jet yelling at Ed about hogtying the babysitter.  
  
"But Jet! I wanted to play with his hair and he wouldn't let me!"  
  
"Well if he said he didn't want you to, you shouldn't have!"  
  
"But it's longer than mine and…"  
  
"Ed…just help me untie him!" he yelled. Spike was going through his gun cabinets and inspecting various firearms when Jet entered.  
  
"Will he survive?" Spike asked jokingly as he analyzed a revolver.  
  
"He will; his hair might not." Jet said with a sigh. "Ed really did some damage."  
  
"Ed always causes some sort of damage, don't she?" Spike said as he started to load up his holsters that hung over his shoulders.   
  
"She does…wait, where do you think you're going?" Jet said with a questionable look on his face.  
  
"Out to find my woman." He said as he placed the final gun in the last available holster and grabbed his coat on his way out the door.  
  
"Wait!" Jet called as he ran after. Spike was stubborn and bullheaded, once he set his mind on something, he'd never rest until he got to the bottom of it.  
  
"Ed, get me a track on Alex's cell phone. See if you can get me a location."  
  
"Okays!" she said as she typed furiously away at the computer but then stopped. Spike was already halfway out the door. "Spi-spi?"  
  
"What Ed?" he groaned.  
  
"Can I play with long-haired boy again?" she asked with her cutest possible voice, like it was possible. Spike rolled his eyes and sighed.  
  
"If I bring Alex home, you can play with him all you want." He said as he stormed out. He was wasting valuable time. He could hear Ed cheering from behind him as she returned to typing furiously at her computer. Jordan was waiting by the door.  
  
"Oh, hi again Spike." He said Spike could see what Jet meant when he said his hair might not survive. It was in tangled huge knots with ribbons and things stuck in it.  
  
"Yea." He said acknowledging his greeting. He couldn't pull his eyes from the wad of gum ed had placed not to far from his scalp.   
  
"Where are you going? Where's Alex?" he asked curiously as he tried to pull a knotted ribbon from one strand of hair.   
  
"I'm actually going out to find Alex. She uh…" he was going to begin with the whole kidnapping story, but remembered that he had been a friend of hers since they were kids. Maybe it wouldn't be a great idea to tell him where she was…or where she wasn't.   
  
"She's where?"  
  
"She's out…shopping. Yea, shopping. You know how women love to shop."  
  
"The why are you taking so many guns with you?" Jordan pointed out. Spike was carrying two large shotguns and then there were the several that were hidden under his coat in various holsters and slings.  
  
"Uh…she decided to run off to a bad part of town?" he attempted. He hoped Jordan was buying the story. He guessed he wasn't by the look on his face.   
  
"Spike, what happened? Where is she?"  
  
"I uh…" he began. There was no shaking him; he had to tell Jordan the truth. "Jordan, promise you won't faint or pass out or something, alright?" Jordan nodded. Spike started with a sigh. "Alex was kidnapped. We don't know by who or where they are, we got a phone call from the guy saying she was safe as long as she was with him, but he wouldn't say who he was or where we could meet up with him…are you okay?" Jordan's face was a drained and pale hue. He attempted a grin, but fell over and passed out. "Damn it, I told you not to pass out or do something stupid! Is that one of my watches in your hair?!"  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*   
  
"So let me get this straight." Alex was saying as Gren finally finished telling her everything. She was sitting with Gren on a large couch sipping tea and eating some sort of sweet cookie. "Vicious, Blade's father, used to head the Red Dragon because he killed the leaders that were above him and took their place. If Vicious would have died or been killed, it would've been passed down to his eldest child, being Blade. Spike went to kill Vicious after Vicious killed Julia, Spike's woman at the time. They killed each other and the syndicate was left with no leader until Blade's records re-surfaced."  
  
"Right." Gren slipped in.  
  
"And now that Blade was found, he's the leader and heads the syndicate now. Only now that he's a leader, he has to find a wife to bear him a child to take over for him should he be killed, but the child must not know anything about their father or the syndicate."  
  
"And since you know much about the syndicate already, your choices are pretty much either marry him and give him a child, or you'll be killed." Gren added to finish the story. Alex gave a final nod.  
  
"And you were hired by Blade to kidnap me and take me to him so he could force me into a decision." Blade nodded, and then Alex nodded and ate another cookie. "Did you bake these?"  
  
"No, I bought them at a store."  
  
"Oh, they taste homemade." She said finishing the tiny biscuit   
  
"That's what they're supposed to taste like, that's what the package says." He said.  
  
"Oh, well…they taste homemade, like someone cooked them in a country house like this." She grinned and giggled.  
  
"Well, they obviously are cooked, but god knows if it was in a country house like this." He said as he crossed his legs and sipped his tea so daintily…like a woman would.  
  
"Wow, I can't believe you're doing that. I've never see a man cross their legs like that." She said amazedly. Gren quickly uncrossed them.  
  
"I was just stretching the muscles was all." He said quickly. He got rather shifty all of a sudden.   
  
"Okay, I was just saying. Jeeze, calm down, you're all jittery all of a sudden." She said as she popped another cookie in her mouth. "Got any milk?"  
  
"You're a piece of work, you know that?" Gren laughed. "Spike's a lucky man."  
  
"You know him?"  
  
"I did. Well…sort of." He said as he scratched his neck.   
  
"Tell me! Were you old friends or something?" she asked as her eyes lit up. How exciting, her kidnapper knew her fiancée!  
  
"Well, it was a long while ago. I was paying sax in a bar when I met Julia. She went on and on, telling me all about Spike. She left and a while later a friend of Spike's showed up to come after the bounty on her head. I think her name was Faye. She was a real slutty kind of girl. But he followed after her when a drug deal went down between Vicious and I and I was fatally wounded. He helped me get my ship off the ground and towards Titan. He left me to die since I thought I was going to. Turns out not long after he left me out there, a cargo ship picked me up and got me to a hospital in time to save my life. So yea, I guess you could say we know each other."   
  
"Very interesting." She said in a goofy tone. Gren couldn't help but laugh. "Well it is interesting!"  
  
"Yea sure." He said as he sipped his tea again.  
  
"Hey, not to be rude or anything, but you seem really feminine. Don't get me wrong, it's a compliment!" she said quickly before he got mad. Too late, he seemed offended anyway.  
  
"Feminine?" he said.   
  
"Yea. It's in a good way though. Most men hate being called feminine, but some guys can pull it of nicely! Like you." She hoped he wasn't getting mad. Gren sighed and dropped his head.  
  
"Well, I guess you could say you hit the nail on the head about me being feminine."  
  
"You're really a girl?!"  
  
"Yes and no…" he groaned as he scratched his neck nervously. Alex cocked an eyebrow.  
  
"What's that supposed to mean?" she said confusedly. Gren sighed. He didn't like telling people, but he supposed he could trust her.  
  
"Well, back when I was fighting the war on Titan, I was captured and then I was used as a test subject for a drug. It had several side effects and well… they were at the least to say pleasant. One of them was the growth of…well… breasts." He said nervously. Alex only blinked as she tried to comprehend what he was telling her.   
  
"So basically, you're a guy with boobs?" she asked bluntly. He nodded. "No way! That's cool!"  
  
"What?" Gren asked. He was now thoroughly confused. "Well, yea, why do you think I wear large shirts like this?"   
  
"Well seeing as I've only known you for a couple hours, I don't really know what you wear all the time. And just curious, but how in the hell do you keep them hidden?" she asked curiously as she started to try and look at him from different angles.   
  
"I uh…I wrap them and strap them down I guess." He said still trying to tell if she was seriously amazed or just making fun.  
  
"Can I see them?" she asked as her eyes lit up and she smiled. Okay, maybe she was amazed. Gren shrugged his shoulders and unbuttoned the front of his blouse. As he opened it, Alex could see how he used a bunch of bandages to flatten his chest. They were wrapped tight and secured with three clips to make sure the bandages wouldn't accidentally release.   
  
"Alright? Can I put my shirt back on?" he said impatiently. Alex made a cheesy hurt face.  
  
"Okay…" she whined. "Man, I finally see something cool and you take it away from me, my parents did that to me all the time…" Gren sighed.  
  
"Fine, I'll take off the bandages then!" he groaned. She smiled and sat back on her side of the couch and waited. He removed the three clips but before he started to unwrap, he smiled. "I'll make you a deal." Alex cocked an eyebrow.  
  
"What kind of deal?"  
  
"I'll show you mine if you show me yours." He grinned. Alex looked at him angrily.  
  
"What? What kind of deal is that?" she whined.  
  
"Simple. It's an eye for an eye. Or in this case, breasts for breasts." He chuckled. Alex pouted. There were only two people who had seen her bare breasts, Spike and Blade, but Blade wasn't really by choice. It was only her chest after all and he was going to show her his. She sighed.  
  
"Fine, I'll do it…" she said as she grabbed the bottom of her shirt and lifted it over her head and off leaving her in her bra. Gren smiled.  
  
"Okay, here we go." He said. He began to unravel the bandages and they began to fall out a little more with every inch that was pulled away. he nodded at her and she reached back behind her to grab the latch of her bra. He smiled as the last little bit of the wraps fell away, revealing to her his full breast. They were surprisingly large and smooth. They looked just like any other woman's boobs. "Now your turn." He said as he pointed a finger. Alex nodded and unhitched the clip on the back of her bra. The straps fell down her shoulders and her entire bra piece came off. Gren damn near passed out. Damned that luck son of a bitch Spike to have this woman! Every little bit of her seemed so perfect, her hair, her eyes, her face, she was like a doll. Her skin was so tan and smooth, her breasts so large and full, Gren was tempted to touch them so badly. It was like telling a child not to do something when they knew damn well they were going to do it anyway.   
  
"What? Stop staring for god's sake!" she blushed. "I'm not staring at your boobs." Gren wanted to pull his eyes off them.   
  
"Alex, do you mind if I…" he began still amazed at her seemingly perfect body. He began to outstretch a hand to her to touch and see if they were as firm as they looked.  
  
"I don't think that would be a good idea," she said as she fidgeted in her seat nervously. It was too late; Gren had already begun to touch her. His fingers were slender and smooth. She felt them continuously massage her left side. She wasn't sure whether to enjoy this or stop it. Meanwhile, Gren was swearing he was in heaven. She was so firm and luscious to the touch.  
  
"Alex, I… I'm not the type to lust after women, but you're one hell of an exception." He said as he brought his other hand up to cup her right side as well.   
  
"I can't do this Gren. I'm an engaged woman, I can't do this to Spike." She said as she bowed her head. Her body loved this but her heart was reeling with pain and guilt. Gren looked up at her face. He could see her feelings plain and simple. She was guilty and confused. He sighed and removed his hands.  
  
"I understand Alex, I'm sorry, I got a little too carried away," he said. "But if you could do one more thing for me, I'll take you back to Spike and that'll be the end of everything." He said. She looked up at him. He began to wrap his chest again. Silently, Alex began to put her bra back on and then her shirt over it. As Gren buttoned up the front of his shirt, he sighed.  
  
"Gren, I just want to go back to Spike and be happy. None of this syndicate stuff and being kidnapped or hunted because of who or what I know." She said as she stood and faced away from him. Damn she had a great ass too!  
  
"I only ask one thing more and I swear to you I will take you back home." He said. "And you'll probably slap me for asking, but to me it's a lot." She looked at him. "All I ask is one kiss. That's it."  
  
"A kiss?" she asked in disgust.  
  
"Think of it as the key to get you home. No strings attached, just one kiss." He said sounding as if there was no pressure. Alex stood silent for a few moments.  
  
"Why? Why me?" she said just above a whisper. He smiled at her.  
  
"Because you are the most attractive woman I've ever seen and I just want to be able to remember you by something more than taking you hostage for a syndicate." He said. "I live out here all alone and then I'm sent after you. Can you imagine what it's like to live all alone like I do being what I am and then someone as gorgeous as you coming along? That's why I'm only asking for this. If I was really selfish, I'd tell you you'd have to have sex with me, but I'm not." Alex stood quiet.  
  
"Fine, I'll do it." she said as she looked up at him in a totally emotionless tone. Her eyes had glazed over with tears. Gren smiled and stood close to her. With his thumbs, he wiped her tears away.  
  
"You won't regret this Alex, trust me." He said as he leaned in closer. Alex shut her eyes and the tears welled forth again. As their lips touched, she swallowed hard before submitting to his demand of the one kiss. He pressed his lips on top of hers and began to nip her lower lip. Alex's tears continued to flow as he placed his left hand on her cheek and wrapped the other hand around the back of her neck to pull her closer into his embrace. Her fingers couldn't help but find their way up to his hair and run themselves through. After a few moments, Gren backed off and let her go. The sight of her still crying upset him slightly. "I'll get my keys and coat, you can go out to the truck." He said finally. She nodded and walked to the door as he walked the other way to gather his coat and keys. When he came out of the house, she was standing beside the truck waiting. He pulled on his coat and jumped in.   
  
"You know where they are, right?" she said quietly. Gren nodded.  
  
"The docks." He reached in his pocket for her cell phone. "Call him, he'll want to know where you are. Just don't tell him who you're with." She took the electronic from him and began to dial. When she brought it to her ear, Gren watched her.   
  
"Spike?" she said softly. "I'm okay hun, I'm on my way home. I'll see you soon. Okay… I love you too." She said as she hung up. She looked at Gren.  
  
"Like I said before, Spike is one lucky bastard." 


	46. Abuse and the Once Dead

Back on the ship Spike was pacing like mad, wearing the floor out beneath his boots. Jet watched him from the nearby couch, and Ed was upside down on the floor.  
  
"God damn son of a bitch no good mother…" he began before he was cut off by Jet.  
  
"Damn it Spike! Calm down, she said she's on her way home! What more do you want?"  
  
"I want her here now! God damn it, if she didn't go, she'd still be here!" he shouted. Just then the door opened and all eyes were on the doorway awaiting the blond woman to walk through. Spike ran for the doorway, but ran right into Faye.  
  
"Hey! Easy there Spike! What's the deal?" she said angrily. Spike shoved her out of his way and walked back and seemingly threw himself down on the couch near Jet. "God damn, what the hell is his problem?!"  
  
"His woman was kidnapped but now she's on her way home and the kidnapper is bringing her." Ed spat out. A pillow whizzed at her and nailed her square in the face.  
  
"Shut up Edward." Spike roared. Faye jumped at what just happened. She'd never seen Spike this angry about anything. What was it about that other girl that he liked so much?  
  
"Damn Spike, throw a little harder next time and take her head off why don't you?" Faye scoffed, she was irritated enough as it was. He glared at her as she walked to her room, or at least what she thought was her room. she opened the door to see her room totally redone and full of musical equipment. A couple of guitars, a keyboard, a drum set, some computer-looking devices, and a few microphones were arranged around the small area. She almost fell over from the shock. Where were all her things? "JET!!!"  
  
"Oh, forgot to tell ya Faye, we moved your stuff into storage since we thought we'd never see you again, and we made this room our music room." he said as he began to pull the door shut again. Faye got angry and forced it back open and pushed inside.  
  
"Damn it Jet, this isn't fair! Some unknown girl just traipses in here and then she owns the place? What the hell?!" she said as she tore through the room and picked up a heavier guitar. It was black with silver smoke airbrushed onto it. Not realizing how heavy it was, she dropped it to the floor and it made a loud twang as the body cracked. A few paint chips littered the floor as Spike's head whipped around to look. He stood slowly and walked to the door of the room. Jet hear him coming and knowing Faye had dropped one of Spike's guitars, he stepped out of the way and feared the worst for his unknowing female acquaintance. As Spike approached the doorway and caught sight of the particular guitar Faye dropped, he froze. Alex had that guitar painted and customized for his 28th birthday, how dare Faye so much as touch it without even saying anything to him? He could feel the anger building, he was already angry from Alex being kidnapped, but now Faye just destroyed his favorite guitar that actually MEANT something to him. How DARE she?! Without knowing, he slowly walked across the room, clenching his fist shut and trying to prevent something irrational from happening, but he couldn't. As soon as he reached her, he wound up and unleashed the strongest slap upon her that was ever imaginable. The crack that sounded as his hand hit her rivaled that of thunder as it echoed through the ship. The force knocked Faye to the ground and the sound of the slap didn't surprise Jet, but Ed jumped, as did Ein.  
  
"Don't EVER speak of my future wife like that again, got it? So help me Faye, if I hear it, I'll come after you and kill you with my bare hands. You know nothing about her to go around and say shit like that about her." he said. He sounded almost inhuman he was so incredibly angry. He picked the guitar up off the ground and looked over the damage Faye had caused. It was cracked in the bottom corner and some of the paint had chipped off leaving only the bare wood. He pulled it over his shoulder and strummed it and cringed when it made an awful sound being all out of tune now. With a sigh, he pulled it off and placed it back in the stand it was originally in and walked out of the room and drew a gun. Faye was still sprawled on the floor half conscious and holding her hand to the cheek she was just slapped across. Tears welled in her eyes as she pulled her hand away and discovered a small amount of blood trickling from the corner of her mouth. Had he hit her that hard? Jet looked down at the girl in pity  
  
"Faye, are you alright?"   
  
"Do I look alright?" she groaned as she sat up and rubbed her cheek a little. It stung horribly still and she had a feeling it would last her a while. "That bitch is going to pay for this." She muttered lowly, but not low enough to not let Jet hear her.  
  
"Faye, Spike and Alex are engaged, it wouldn't be very smart to try to come between the two of them. Just think of it this way, if he did this to you after you messed up one of his possessions, think of what he'd do to you if you messed up his love life. He's come so far and Alex is a good girl…"  
  
"But she's only 22! Spike's about 28, 29 now right? Isn't he the slightest bit cradle-robbing?" she interjected. Jet shook his head.  
  
"Alex and Spike deserve each other. They both have been through so much; it's only fair that they found each other in time." he said as he helped her to her feet and then turned to leave. "Just try to leave as soon as possible, it won't be pretty soon when she comes home. She was kidnapped earlier today and Spike forced himself to leave the hospital this morning to find her. I recommend you leave quickly." He said as he left the room leaving Faye to pull herself to her feet on her own. She just sat there for a little while, trying to piece together what had just happened. So that ignorant bastard of an ex-partner of hers actually asked the little bratty girl to marry him huh? Well this wasn't good. Spike was way too good for some little childish girl like what's-her-face. Faye poked at the tiny paint chips that littered a small area of the floor and swept them into a neat pile with the tips of her fingers. They looked like tiny shards of matte silver.   
  
"Jet, where's my god damn shotgun, I'll shoot that motherfucker as soon as he walks through the door, the bastard. I can't believe someone would even attempt to kidnap her…" she could hear Spike rant on, anger boiling in his veins and hardening his heart to ice that only that spoiled brat of a girl could melt. The more Faye thought of Alex, the more she hated her. Why didn't she take the chance to tell Spike how she really felt before the end? What tied her tongue? Well it was too late now, Spike was engaged and there was no coming between him and Alex, Jet was obviously favoring the two of them, and Ed was just Ed. It was clear there was no longer a place for Faye on the ship; she should just leave and not come back. But should she tell Spike how she felt? At least get it off her chest? It wouldn't even faze him since he was so angry with her right now. Despite the stinging pain, she wiped the blood from her lip again and stood. Supporting herself at first, but then regaining her balance and walking out of the room. Ed was holding Ein close with her eyes darting around suspiciously and acting shifty-like, Jet was leaning against a wall, and Spike was sitting at the galley table loading what looked like every single gun he owned with as much ammunition as they each could hold.  
  
"Spike I…" she began before trailing off. Her voice wasn't loud to begin with, Spike couldn't hear it over the loading of his many firearms.   
  
"Just let it go Faye, even I wouldn't dare to bother him right now." Jet warned as he sipped some scotch from a glass.  
  
"But I," she started before a hiss sounded from the hallway. The entire ship silenced and Spike whipped his head around in the blink of an eye. He heard two pairs of footsteps coming down the hall, both were slow, light, and made the same clicking noise on the metal floor. Faye lost her voice, Jet almost dropped his scotch, and Ed and Ein were staring at the doorway anxiously. The sound of the footsteps drew closer still in what felt like an eternity. Finally, as they grew loud enough to be just a few feet away from the doorway, they slowed to a stop. Spike picked up his shotgun and readied to shoot. He got up and walked over to get a clear shot at the parson that would walk through the doorway with Alex. As he took aim, a blond girl walked through the door with eyes focused on the floor and a weak disposition, she slowly brought her eyes up to his. He began to lower the gun as the second figure walked through the doorway, the female/ male figure of a ghost from Spike's past, Grenicia Mars Elijah Guo Eckener. Spike's gun dropped to the floor from his hands, Jet's glass fell and shattered, Faye fainted, and Ed and Ein sat and stared. Tears welled in Alex's eyes as she ran to Spike who was still shocked at the sight of the man, or woman, that died in his arms not long ago. 


	47. Gren's Explanation and Blade's Persistan

As Alex rushed to him, Spike didn't know what to do first. All his emotions rushed forward at once; confused, angered, relieved, all these and more, trying to surface at the same time.  
  
"Spike!" Alex squeaked as she wrapped her arms around him in a flood of tears. He almost fell over. He maintained the constant glare at Gren. No one spoke for fear of someone, particularly Spike, snapping and going on a shooting spree. Alex continued crying into Spike's shoulder, and as he began to get an idea of what happened, Spike slowly wrapped his arms around her, slowly bringing himself out of the trance he was in.  
  
"You…you're dead." He managed to utter after a few moments. Gren stood there with a nonchalant look on his face. He knew he was going to get this type of response from him, seeing as the last time anyone saw him, he was almost dead.  
  
"If I'm standing before you Spike, I'm not dead." He said as he shifted the weight on his feet. He stood there with confidence. Spike still was somewhat shocked and wanted to have a little…chat with Gren, but he didn't want to upset Alex. Not to mention he was still very fragile from his outing the other day and his early checkout from the hospital.   
  
"Alex, I want you to go lay down, alright?" he said. She looked up at him and sniffled. He couldn't help but smile, seeing her face again when he thought he never would. He wiped her tears away and sent her into their room. When the door was safely shut, Spike hobbled over to the couch and sat down with a grunt, he was still very sore and stiff from laying in the hospital bed and whatnot. "Gren, have a seat." Gren nodded and took a seat in the chair across from him. Jet quickly grabbed a dustpan and brush and swept up the broken glass he'd dropped and wiped up the alcohol that was inside and that had spilled all over the floor. He was careful to keep very quiet so he could hear everything the two said.  
  
"You aren't looking too good Spike, you should take better care of yourself." Gren said as he relaxed into his chair. Spike scowled at him.  
  
"Why'd you take her." He demanded. Gren rolled his eyes.  
  
"Now Spike, I honestly didn't know about you and her. I was just sent to do it."   
  
"Who sent you?" Spike asked, or rather demanded yet again. Gren's eyes sank to the floor with a sigh as he leaned forward resting his elbows on his knees. He looked back up at Spike who was staring at him intently, waiting for his answer.  
  
"I'll be killed if I tell you."  
  
"You'll be killed if you don't." Spike said making reference to the gun on the table. Gren sat for a while, debating whether to tell or not. Spike glared him down, Gren could feel it, Jet made himself look busy as he attempted to sweep up the broken glass, but as he got it all up and stood, Gren looked up at Spike and spoke.  
  
"Blade sent me." he said quickly. Jet dropped the dustpan full of the broken glass, scattering the shards once again. Spike shut his eyes and rocked forward to the same position Gren sat, with his elbows resting on his knees. "He paid me ten million woolongs up front with another forty million promised on her delivery. When I got her into the van to take her to him and she told me who she was engaged to, I decided that it might not be too smart to play between the two of you based on his family history and yours." Spike was quiet for a while. Jet swept up the glass again and managed to get it to the trash this time.  
  
"He put fifty million on my girl's head, that son of a bitch. I can't believe it." he said to himself. Gren stood as he said this. "Where do you think you're going?"  
  
"By now the syndicate probably knows I won't be delivering their bounty, therefore the fifty million has now been placed both on my head and hers. One hundred million woolongs for the two of us alive to the Red Dragon Syndicate, one hell of a paycheck huh?" he said as he headed for the door. "Except the fifty on me is now dead or alive." Spike picked up his gun.  
  
"I could use a quick fifty million, couldn't you Jet?" Spike said as he took aim. Jet looked over at him and shook his head.  
  
"Spike, don't you get it? He threw away his life to bring Alex back to you. You could at least be thankful." He said irritated. Spike thought for a moment and Gren just stood there. Finally he lowered his gun to the table and sat back.  
  
"Good to see you one last time Spike, take care of yourself. And tell Alex I'm sorry for everything that happened today, I really, truly am." He said as he turned and left. His footsteps echoed down the hall. After the door opened and shut, Jet and Spike looked at each other.  
  
"Lets get out of here, I need a vacation." Spike said as he stood. He walked slowly to the door of his and Alex's bedroom and pushed it open. As the light shined in, he saw her curled up asleep on their bed with her cheeks damp from crying. The light danced on the ring he had given her and brightened his mood a little as he sat down on the edge of the bed. He kicked off his boots as the ship's engines started and laid down beside her. With a handful of the sheets, he dried her cheeks, but it woke her up. When she realized that the engines were on, she abruptly sat up.  
  
"Spike, where are we going?" she said worriedly. He hushed her and had her lay back down beside him, taking her in his arms.  
  
"We're just getting off the planet. It's alright, you're safe here now sweetheart." He said calmingly as he held her close. She started to cry again.  
  
"Spike it was terrible, I was so scared and I thought I would never see you again." she sobbed. He continued to hush her.  
  
"Calm down, everything's alright. Just please lay down and take a nap with me. We've both had full days and a rest would help us both out." He urged. He felt her head nod before she nuzzled into him.  
  
"Are you okay? I mean, are you healing alright?" she said softly. He couldn't believe her, no matter what was going on, she had to make sure he was alright.  
  
"Now that you're home, I'm much better." He smiled. He knew she didn't hear his answer; she was unconscious before he finished his sentence.  
  
For the next few weeks, the crew of the bebop took it easy. There was no bounty chasing at all, even the easy ones. After taking off from the planet, they cruised around the system for a time with a short stop on Venus for a little more relaxing. After that, they once again cruised around open space. Jet preoccupied himself with a few bonsai's that needed trimming, Ed created a few new hacking programs for whenever they did return to bounty hunting, and Faye just generally floated in and out, staying out of everyone's way ever since the incident between her and Spike about the guitar and Alex. Spike healed more and more each day; he was still very sore, but he felt better with time. Alex spent most of her time either watching Spike and keeping him company, or gutting her ship. It bothered Jet slightly when she did because of all the noise, but it was understandable. After their stop on Venus, she got back in touch with Pidge and found out when would be a good time to get back together for another assessment of what she had pulled out and off of the Pegasus and where to go from there. She told him she couldn't come back to the planet just yet, but she'd let him know when they'd be able to get back together. Those weeks were peaceful, until an incoming message from Mars one evening.  
  
Spike was sitting out in the hangar watching Alex fool with her ship, Ed was at her computer with Ein, and Jet was on the bridge playing games on the computer when the signal came in.  
  
"What the…who is this?" Jet asked as the connection opened and a picture of his ISSP buddy Frank popped up on the screen. "Oh, hey, what's up Frank?"  
  
"Jet, we've gotten some information from an anonymous source that you're carrying a bounty head with you for safe keeping. What's going on?" he asked. Jet looked at him oddly; what the hell was he talking about?  
  
"We haven't hunted any bounties for about a month now Frank, I don't know what you're talking about." Frank looked around for a second and then whispered into the screen.  
  
"Look Jet, I could get in some serious shit for telling you this, but I'm only telling you to keep you safe. Some guy from the Red Dragon came in here a few days ago with information about a tall blond girl traveling with you guys that caused some sort of uproar in the syndicate and they need us to find her. What's the deal? You got her or what?" Jet was shocked.   
  
"What did the guy look like? Tall guy with silvery hair?" he asked.  
  
"Yea, why?" Frank responded as he recalled the visitor.  
  
"Shit! That was their leader. The person he's after is a girl from his past he grew up with, he wants to kill her because she won't marry him and give him a son." Jet explained. Frank listened to every word.  
  
"Well, it does sound serious enough I suppose, if we can get her to file a complaint with the ISSP she could be alright, but she has to come to the station." He said after someone walked behind him. Jet thought about it for a second.  
  
"Hold on for a few seconds, will you? I'll call her up to talk with you now." He said as he opened up another line to the hangar. Alex's grease-covered face popped up a few moments later.  
  
"Yea?" she said as she wiped some grease off her cheek with a rag.  
  
"I need you up on the bridge now, there's something really big going on and you're in danger again." he said Alex's eyes widened and she nodded. She disappeared from the screen and the link was closed bringing up Frank again.  
  
"Well?"  
  
"She's on her way up. why didn't you call us sooner Frank?"  
  
"I haven't had the chance. As soon as they left, everyone got on the case because he offered to reward the entire fleet. That's why it's a big deal this time Jet, you need to get her somewhere safe and have her file against him." Frank explained as the door whooshed open. Alex stood there out of breath and with grease all over her still.  
  
"Wipe that off and come over here." Jet said as she came through the doorway.   
  
"What's going on Jet? Why am I in danger again?" she said as she wiped the grease away and came upon the screen.  
  
"Alex, this is Frank. He works at the ISSP and he called with information regarding some disturbing things that have been going on as of late." He said with a quick introduction. Alex nodded with a quick grin as did Frank.  
  
"Miss Bondora is it?"  
  
"Yes, that's me." she said half curious, half afraid.  
  
"A few days ago a Mr. Blade McGowan came to us claiming that you caused some sort of uproar in the Red Dragon Syndicate and that they needed to find you as soon as possible."  
  
"Oh no…please god no!" she practically wailed. She couldn't go through it again, no more, she wanted no more to do with him.  
  
"It's alright, he still doesn't know where you are and no one is aware I am talking to you right now, but here's what we need to do to insure your safety. We need you to come to a station and file a complaint against him claiming harassment or whatever else is going on. I recommend coming to this station and filing with me because Jet and I go way back and you're guaranteed safe with me. I follow my paperwork through until it's in stone." He said reassuring her of her safety. She looked to Jet.  
  
"If you get a disguise together, we can walk right in and get it over with no questions asked." He said with the most sincere look. Alex thought for a moment before she decided.  
  
"Alright, we'll be there soon then." She said before she turned and walked off.  
  
"Where are you going?" Jet asked before she left the room. she turned and looked at him as the door whooshed open and it was revealed Spike was on the other side.  
  
"I'm going to find that hair dye I bought a few weeks ago." She said as she walked out and Spike walked in. Spike looked at her cluelessly and walked over to Jet.  
  
"What's she looking for that for?" he asked as he came up on the computer. Jet sighed and leaned back to stretch his back.  
  
"I tell you Spike, you'd better love that woman a whole hell of a lot to stick with her through the messes she keeps getting us into. I swear I just grew another couple gray hairs." 


	48. Love, Lust, and Red Hair Dye

As Alex walked down the hallway to the living area, Spike caught up with her.

"What's going on? What's with the dye?" Alex didn't even look up.

"It's Blade again." Spike stopped in his tracks as Alex kept walking. He couldn't help but cringe and clench his teeth.

"What now," Spike asked as he caught up with Alex. She walked through the living area and into their room.

"He went to the ISSP and put a bounty out on my head again. Except if it's a member of the ISSP that gets me, the whole fleet gets the reward. Jet didn't say what it was they get rewarded, but if the entire fleet is after me, it must be huge." Alex was in their room by now, going through the closet looking for the dye she bought. When she found the package, she pulled it out. On the front of the box was a picture of a girl with vibrant crimson colored hair. Spike's eyes damn near popped out of his head.

"Is that the color?" he asked as she opened the box and pulled out three bottles, two with the coloring chemicals and one with conditioner. She looked at him.

"You don't like it?"

"No, no... it's just... I've never seen you with anything but blond and red is a big change from blond." He said quickly. She looked at him for a moment but then smiled weakly.

"You'll like it, trust me. And if not I'll change it back before the wedding." She picked up the bottles and the gloves that also came out of the box and walked to the bathroom. She wrapped a towel around her shoulders and mixed the two coloring bottles as Spike watched from the doorway. It looked to him as if she was squeezing thick blood out of the bottle and onto her scalp, which made him uneasy considering what he went through only a few weeks before. After she got it all on and worked into her hair, she slipped on a plastic bag over it and walked out of the bathroom.

"What now?" he asked as she sat down on the couch. She looked up at him, still shaken by the fact she was now a bounty and everyone was after her. He could see it in her eyes it was bothering her.

"Now I wait until I have to rinse it out, then I'll have red hair." She said. It was in her voice too, the worry and fear hung on every word, every syllable. He sat on the table, directly in front of her, placing his hands on her knees.

"I don't want to wait any longer to get married Alex, I almost died before I could ask you to be my wife, I don't want to risk losing you again." He said looking into her ice blue eyes. She returned his gaze and tried to smile for him, but she couldn't find it anywhere.

"I don't want you to get involved with this all over again Spike, please just lie low while Jet and I take care of it, please?" Tears began to flow as she spoke. He smiled as he wiped them away for her.

"Alex, I've been involved with the Red Dragon for years, this time isn't making much of a difference. When I fought Vicious and almost died doing so, I had nothing to live for. Julia was dead and there was nothing left for me. Now I know why I lived. I lived so I could meet you," he said as a smile warmed his face. The sight of his happiness made her crack a grin and eventually widen to a matching smile. Spike moved his hands up to her shoulders and rubbed them vigorously. "The way I felt for Julia, it's nothing like how I feel for you. I just wanted to be with her, she was a beautiful woman. You, Alex, you're more than just a beautiful woman. You're beautiful, smart, talented, funny, AND you can kick my ass. I love a woman that can kick my ass, and you look great doing it!" he chuckled. His joking was working; he was lightening her mood as easily as the dye was working on her hair. When she finally stopped laughing enough, Spike ended his little speech. "The point is Alex, I just wanted to be with Julia, I don't know if I wanted to marry her, I didn't know if I ever would want to. But you, you're everything I want and more. I love you Alexis Maria Roselynn Bondora, I really truly do." She could feel the tears welling in her eyes as he finished. With a smile, she leaned in and kissed him as he did the same. His hands ran up her shoulders, one stopping at her neck, the other on her cheek, stroking her soft skin with his fingers. After a few moments and a few quick nips back and forth, they parted and just sat with each other for a while. About half an hour later, Alex looked up at the clock and jumped.

"I gotta get this stuff out of my hair," she said as she carefully pulled the bag off her head. Her hair tried to fall down from the way it was wrapped up, but she held it in place with the bag until she got to the bathroom. Spike was right on her tail as she got in and knelt over the bathtub. The water ran red as soon as it hit her hair, bright blood red.

"Are you alright?" he asked, it looked a little too much like blood. She chuckled.

"I'm fine Spike, just grab the bottle of conditioner that came with the kit," she said as she continued running her fingers through her hair under the water. He walked off to find the bottle when he ran into Jet.

"Where's Alex?"

"She's in the bathroom washing the dye out of her hair, why?" Spike answered.

"I was just going to let her know we'll be landing soon. What color is she?"

"Red."

"Red? How red?"

"She says crimson colored."

"Oh."

"Red like Edward?" Ed jumped in. Spike looked down.

"No, red like... darker than Ein's collar." He answered.

"Oh." Ed answered before speeding off to the bathroom to see. Jet walked back up to the ship's bridge and Spike found the conditioner. He took it back, almost tripping over Ed into the bathroom where the water ran clear through Alex's hair. He tapped her shoulder and handed her the bottle. She massaged the conditioner in and then rinsed it out after a few minutes of it sitting in her hair. The water was turned off and her hair was soaking wet and a dark crimson. She wrapped her hair in a towel and was followed by both Spike and Ed to the bedroom where she quickly ran a comb through it and then started drying it with her hairdryer. After it was about halfway done, Ed lost interest and left, shutting the door behind her. A few minutes later, it was dry and Spike watched in amazement as she ran her fingers through it, played with it, and then whirled around to show him. It looked amazing on her.

"Wow." Was all he could say at the moment.

"Wow? That's what I get?" she asked as she walked up to him and stood in front of him. He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her down to him, straddling his lap, facing him.

"That's all I can think of to say at the moment, I'm sorry." He smiled as he kissed her. She began to giggle.

"But you know what the best part of this stuff is?" she said interrupting his kiss. He smiled at her.

"What, love?" She took a thick strand between her thumb and forefinger and held it under his nose. He inhaled and was rewarded with the soft sweet-smelling scent of roses. As he closed his eyes and inhaled again, she giggled.

"Smells good huh?" He smiled at her.

"Smells as beautiful as you look." He said as he pulled her back to lie down on top of him. He held her close as she playfully tried to get back up. She lightly beat his chest and pulled on his arms to let her go.

"Oh come on Spike! Lemmie go!" she laughed. He kissed all over her neck and collarbone, even taking a quick nip at her earlobes. Her laughter slowly subsided and she began to play his game as well, tilting her head to allow him to kiss her neck more, releasing breathy sighs. He bit down lightly on her sensitive skin which prompted her to seize up for a moment.

"Sorry, that was a little hard." He apologized as he pulled back to look her in her eyes. She giggled but then looked back at him with the most seductive look he had ever seen her give anyone.

"It felt good though." She said with a hint of 'Do it again, I dare you.' in her voice. He smiled as her forehead met his and the tips of their noses rubbed. After a few moments, their noses rubbed right past each other and they were sucking, nipping, and even biting at each other's lips again. Spike's hands wandered all over. They ran over her shoulders, all around her neck, her arms, but careful not do go anywhere near her breasts. He wasn't sure about any moves ha made on her because of her past, he was afraid to rush her into anything. She became aware of how he kept away, but she wanted him to touch her, they belonged to each other now, they were almost man and wife. She pulled back for a moment.

"What's wrong?" Spike asked as she withdrew, supporting herself on her own arms that were on the bed just above his shoulders.

"Spike, please don't be afraid to touch me. What happened years ago is just that, it happened years ago and it's done and over with. You don't have to be careful about what you do to me. Please, don't hold back your love." She said as she brought herself down into his neck again and nuzzled before she began to breathe on his soft skin, and then kiss him softly. Spike was glad she noticed. He was glad to know he didn't have to hold back like he did. He didn't mind most of the time, but this was a welcome relief for him. With her approval now, his hands ran down her shoulders again and slowly took a turn towards her breasts. As his palms stopped over them and his fingers slowly curved around them, squeezing lightly, caressing and massaging them gently. As he did this, her breath became sharp and her breathing became heavier. In response she took a sharp bite at his neck, just above his collarbone. He inhaled sharply, but the pain quickly receded, giving away to pleasure that rocketed through him. He slowly ran his hands down to her stomach and then daringly under her shirt, slowly pulling it up around her stomach, then around the small of her back, but then even slower up further to uncover her breasts, which looked about ready to tumble out of her black satin bra. As she worked his neck, he palmed her breasts, and then massaged them with his whole hands. As her kissing and biting grew hungrier, he knew he was pleasing her. He reached around her back to the hook and eye latch that held the strapless bra around her. As it slowly fell away and the chilled air swept over her bare chest, her nipples began to instantly harden. His palm ran over them and then just his thumbs as he strummed them. Her breathing became heavier on his neck, but then she kissed down along his jaw and back to his lips, sucking and biting hungrily, as if he had just turned up the dial on how ferocious she could become. Her hands now began to run up and down his chest and abs. He clenched the muscles in response to her touch, it was that powerful. The both of them knew where this was heading and it looked like it was heading that way at quite a fast pace. Spike pulled back from Alex, both panting from all the stimulation.

"Are you sure about this Alex? It's up to you. I'm not pushing." He said as he began to catch his breath. Her eyes looked at him and sparkled as she smiled and even slightly chuckled.

"Spike, I'll soon have your last name, I love you." She said as she looked into his eyes. To his surprise, she then wrestled off her shirt, she was topless above him. With all seriousness in her eyes, he knew she wanted to do this. He waited a moment before cracking a grin and striking the inside of one of her elbows that supported her. As she toppled down to one side, he flipped her over until he was the one above her. As he rose to his knees on either side of her hips, he stripped his shirt off. She watched with a wide smile as he stood up off the bed and tossed the shirt to the hamper, but the tie still hanging loosely around his neck.

"Off with the tie?" he asked as he took it in hand. She pondered a minute and then nodded. The tie came off and was tossed away. She sat up on the bed and held herself up by her arms, watching him; the way his muscles rippled, the way he moved. He moved to stand before her, the way she did only a few minutes earlier. "You're sure about this Alex? It can wait if you need more time." He said. She smiled and shook her head.

"I'm ready Spike. Don't worry about me please?" she said with a slight smile. He leaned over and smiled, and to her surprise, he scooped her up in his arms and laid her on the bed so she would fit; her head resting on the pillow as he let her down. He wished he had more time, but if she wanted to do it now, that was fine with him. The question was, was she really ready for it?


	49. The Beginning of The End?

Spike crawled overtop her, aligning himself with her. He was probably just as nervous as she was about this whole thing. He knew she was no virgin, thanks to Zeke Diboa's heartless act, but it was her first time she was actually doing this willfully. His left hand palmed her cheek as the other held him above her. She smiled up at him and then nuzzled into his hand.

"Lock." Spike said aloud, prompting the bedroom door to lock shut. He smiled and began the long-awaited act they'd both been dying for.

-----

In the cockpit, Jet guided the ship into the bay, splashing down into the black waters underneath the moonlit, midnight sky. As the ship powered down, he felt more and more anxious, a feeling that something was going to happen tonight. He shut off all the lights in the cabin and let the light from the moon fall over him. The lights of the city before him never looked like this to him, like he'd never actually seen them. They sparkled and twinkled like the stars in the sky above; in a seemingly chaotic order, they took their turns lighting and dimming. Somehow he had the feeling that someone wouldn't be coming back to the ship tonight, that things would be forever changed. With a heavy sigh, he stood and headed back to the living area of the ship. As he came into the area and collapsed into the cushions of the couch, the door of Spike and Alex's room slowly opened and Spike stepped out with lit cigarette in mouth, fixing his tie about his neck. Jet kicked his feet up on the table and leaned back with his arms behind his head.

"Ready?" He asked. He was most definitely not looking forward to this. Spike grinned toothily, the cigarette clenched between his teeth.

"Jet, I'm ready for anything." He said cockily. Jet just looked at him in nothing but a gloomy disposition, he couldn't shake that feeling. Just then, Alex came from the bedroom, pulling her hair into a low ponytail. Jet hadn't seen the red yet, he was taken by slight surprise.

"Nice hair Alex… you sure you want to go through with this?" he asked as he leaned forward and then rocked up to a stand with a grunt. Her face was glowing; she wore a soft, content smile on her face. She nodded and looked to Spike, then back to Jet.

"Let's do it."

-----

After loading up on weaponry and ammunition, they headed out. Their eyes and ears were everywhere, keeping alert of what might happen and who might show up. Jet and Alex both told Spike to stay due to his injuries, but if she was going, he was going and there was no talking him out of it. They neared the station and grew increasingly alert. The only person they could rely on was Frank, but if anyone else realized who she was, it was all over. After finally reaching the building did they relax the slightest bit. Officers came and went in and out of the building, paying them no mind as they walked through the sliding glass doors. Inside there were people all around, the bustle of the interior was loud and irritating; phones rang, people cried and screamed, it was a typical law enforcement building. Jet immediately went to the front desk and asked for Frank, who, in no time at all, had appeared and escorted the three into a room adjacent to an interrogation room, behind the mirror. He locked the door from the inside and set a few papers in front of Alex.

"These need to get filled out, it'll make it legal that you came and informed us of the harrassment. And then there are also papers in here to file a restraining order. If he comes within 100 yards of you or your property, he'll be arrested immediately." Frank explained as he handed Alex a pen.

"Frank, he's the head of a crime syndicate, you won't be arresting him." Jet said dryly.

"No, but it puts a bounty on his head and makes it known. Who wouldn't love to whack a mob boss from a mob that destroyed their life?" he said. "Not necessarily you guys, but some other unknown bounty hunter." Spike nodded in agreement.

"Whoever gets Blade would pretty much be worshipped, but then the Red Dragon would come for them… A vicious unending cycle."

"In any case, this makes it legal and binding that you filed and anything that happens is pinned on Blade." Frank summarized. Alex nodded and began filling out the papers. Her hand was like lightning on that paper, scribbling everything down quickly yet neatly. When she was mid paper stack, Spike spoke.

"Hey, let's celebrate after the paperwork's done." Jet looked up at him and Alex chuckled and continued to write.

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Jet queried. Spike looked to Frank and Frank nodded. He crossed the room to a desk, pulling open a larger drawer. From the drawer he lifted a box about the size of a computer tower. It was black with a white ribbon around it. Jet caught sight first and lifted a brow, Alex was still head-down writing away on the forms. "What in the name of God is that?" Jet questioned. Finally Alex paused and lifted her head to see what Spike had planned. Frank handed the box to Spike, who placed it down on the table in front of Alex and took a step back.

"Open it Alex." Spike said. She looked up at him curiously, as a child would. Maneuvering the pen in hand, she reached out and tugged on the bow, unraveling it and placing the ribbon on the table. Then she placed the pen down and pulled the box over to her to lift the lid off. It slid off with ease and she placed it down on the table. Inside, there was a thin layer of red tissue paper laid over something light in color. Alex looked up at Spike again who smiled at her excitedly. She tried to grin as she pulled the paper away to reveal a mass of white fabric. Her face grew really cold, then really hot. She pulled out the fabric and realized it was an elegant white dress. The dress was strapless and tight, draping down, body hugging until thigh length, then it opened up into a much flowwier design with a small train behind. Attached to the sides were sleeves that covered from the upper arm down to the wrist tightly.

"Spike…" She trailed off looking up to him in shock. He leaned on the table, just in front of her and leaned in, kissing her softly.

"After all this is over, there's a chapel not far from here. Let's get you into that dress and go get married… tonight." She stared him down for a few moments, trying to register what he'd said. Suddenly she dropped the dress back into the box and grabbed for the pen hastily, writing faster and slightly messier than before, wearing a huge smile on her face all the while. "Is that a yes?"

"Shut up and let me concentrate so I can finish damn it!" Alex snapped, barely allowing Spike to finish his sentence. All three men in the room laughed, despite the tension in the air: even Jet. After about five more minutes of the sound of Alex scribbling on the paper, she was finished and ready to leave, but before she did, she wanted to put the dress on. She disappeared into a bathroom and minutes later she stepped out wearing the dress. Underneath the dress, in the box, there was also a pair of shoes and a black case locked shut with a key. She had the case in her arms when she appeared before Spike, who about dropped dead at the sight of her in all white.

"I thought it was bad luck to see the bride in the dress before the wedding?" Jet teased.

"I don't believe in that superstition." Alex said dreamily. "What's this Spike?" she said as she held out the case. He reached in his pocket and pulled out a tiny key, unlocking the case with it.

"A very special wedding gift from me to you." He said as he opened it. Inside, placed delicately in a custom shaped foam protective layer sat the Jericho, the only gun he ever used. He'd use others, but it always wound up that this was the gun used above all. "I had a feeling you'd want to wear it on our wedding day, so there's also a holster you strap to your thigh. The gun sits between your legs and remains hidden at all times. I guess it was a way to keep me with you always, so that I'm always there to protect you. It's already loaded too, so be careful with it."

"Oh Spike…" she said with a sigh as she leapt into his arms. He spun her around and then helped her get the holster on comfortably.

"Alright you two, let's go get this over with and move on. We gotta get outta here before we overstay our welcome." Jet said as he led the way out the building. Alex and Spike were ecstatic, smiling all the while. Down one hallway, up some steps, around a corner, and soon they had reached the entrance where they came in. They walked through the door, all three were arm in arm smiling when they realized they were all in trouble… Men in black and gold coats surrounded them, all with guns cocked and aimed, pointed directly at them. The three froze immediately, an echoing laughter chilling them to the bone.

"Oh look and my beauteous blushing bride with locks of crimson," the voice said eerily as one form stepped forward from the rest, "I couldn't have asked for a more perfect time, nor a more perfect woman. You've been misbehaving Alexis, you're going to have to be punished for behaving so poorly." Blade said as the moon caught his silver hair and his pale face that gleamed with a psychotic grin that was enough to turn even the boldest man's stomach.


End file.
